Part 63 (1/2)
”No, Planchet; farewell!”
”Eh, gentle on the staircase, or by going aithout having sat down”
”If we had known you had a lady upstairs,” replied Athos, with his customary coolness, ”ould have asked permission to pay our respects to her”
Planchet was so disconcerted by this little extravagance, that he forced the passage, and himself opened the door to admit the comte and his son
Truchen was quite dressed: in the costume of the shopkeeper's wife, rich yet coquettish; Ger French eyes She left the apartment after two courtesies, and went down into the shop--but not without having listened at the door, to knohat Planchet's gentlemen visitors would say of her Athos suspected that, and therefore turned the conversation accordingly Planchet, on his part, was burning to give explanations, which Athos avoided But, as certain tenacities are stronger than others, Athos was forced to hear Planchet recite his idyls of felicity, translated into a language us
So Planchet related how Truchen had charood luck to his business, as Ruth did to Boaz
”You want nothing now, then, but heirs to your property”
”If I had one he would have three hundred thousand livres,” said Planchet
”Hu lost”
This word _little fortune_ placed Planchet in his rank, like the voice of the sergeant when Planchet was but a _piqueur_ in the regiment of Piedmont, in which Rochefort had placed hirocer would marry Truchen, and, in spite of fate, establish a family
This appeared thethe business was her cousin Having heard all that was necessary of the happy prospects of the retiring grocer, ”What is M d'Artagnan about?” said he; ”he is not at the Louvre”
”Ah! nan has disappeared”
”Disappeared!” said Athos, in surprise
”Oh! monsieur, we knohat that means”
”But _I_ do not know”
”Whenever M d'Artagnan disappears it is always for so to you about it?”
”Never”
”You were acquainted with his departure for England formerly, were you not?”
”On account of the speculation” said Planchet, heedlessly
”The speculation!”
”I mean--” interrupted Planchet, quite confused
”Well, well; neither your affairs nor those of your master are in question; the interest we take in him alone has induced me to apply to you Since the captain of the musketeers is not here, and as we cannot learn fronan, ill take our leave of you _Au revoir_, Planchet, _au revoir_ Let us be gone, Raoul”
”Monsieur le comte, I wish I were able to tell you--”
”Oh, not at all; I am not the man to reproach a servant with discretion”