I was horribly vexed; certainly she had a right to suspect me; but the mocking tone she had a.s.sumed, her manner, which denoted anything but conviction, and the expression of her face, augmented my chagrin, and I did not know what to say. How could I prove to her that I had not lied?
At that moment, a man of some forty years, stylishly dressed, and not ill-looking, but with a vague and shifty look in his eyes, stopped in front of us and paid a compliment or two to the incredulous Frederique.
I glanced at the new-comer, whose face was not unfamiliar; he caught my eye and bowed to me very affably. I cannot describe the thrill of pleasure which that bow afforded me, although I did not know who had bestowed it upon me.
"Ah! do you know Monsieur Rochebrune?" Madame Dauberny inquired.
"Yes, madame, I have met monsieur several times in company, notably at General Traunitz"s and at Madame de Saint-Albert"s receptions."
"True," said I, searching my memory; "I remember very well having had the pleasure of meeting monsieur at those receptions."
"To tell the truth," rejoined Madame Dauberny, "I should have been surprised if Monsieur Sordeville had not known you, knowing all Paris as he does, and all that everyone is doing, all that takes place!"
"Oh, madame! you accredit me with much more knowledge than I possess,"
replied Monsieur Sordeville, smiling with what he intended for an affable expression, which accorded ill with the natural character of his face. "You are very late, madame; Armantine was distressed at your non-appearance; which, however, did not prevent her dancing. But Monsieur Rochebrune can tell you that, for I saw him waltzing with my wife, and very well, too, I a.s.sure you."
"What, monsieur! was it your wife with whom I had the pleasure of waltzing?"
"Yes, monsieur."
"Why, what extraordinary mortals you are!" cried Madame Dauberny, looking from one to the other, with an ironical expression. "You know each other, and yet monsieur does not know that it was Madame Sordeville with whom he waltzed?"
"What is there so surprising in that, madame? I have met Monsieur Rochebrune at parties to which my wife did not accompany me; that happens every day. Because one is married is no reason why one should not go out sometimes without his or her spouse; and I may say that you yourself are proving the truth of that statement this very evening."
Monsieur Sordeville said this in a meaning tone. Now that I knew that he was my charming partner"s husband, I examined him more closely. He was very good-looking; his features were regular, and he had rather a distinguished face; but I was not attracted by it.
Meanwhile, Madame Dauberny had not remained pa.s.sive under the little shaft Monsieur Sordeville had let fly at her; but I did not hear her rejoinder, because my pretty partner came up and took her husband"s arm just as her friend was speaking to him.
"My dear Armantine," said my patroness, "you do not know, do you, that your husband is acquainted with Monsieur Rochebrune, whom I took the liberty of bringing to this festivity? He"s a terrible man, is your husband; if I had undertaken to introduce anyone here under a false name, he would certainly have discovered the whole intrigue."
The pretty brunette smiled and blushed slightly; then she put her arm through her friend"s and led her away, but not before I had whispered in Madame Dauberny"s ear:
"Well! are you convinced now that I did not lie to you?"
"I never thought that you were lying," she replied, squeezing my hand as a man would do.
Monsieur Sordeville remained with me. He seemed inclined to continue the conversation, and I asked nothing better than to become more fully acquainted with the husband of a lady who pleased me exceedingly. For if he had a face which did not attract me, I was at liberty to think of his wife while I was talking with him.
"She is an extremely agreeable person--Madame Dauberny!" Monsieur Sordeville began.
"Yes, she is very agreeable; she seems to have much wit."
"Have you never before been in a position to judge of her wit?"
I bit my lips; I had said a stupid thing; but I hastened to add, in an off-hand tone:
"What I meant to say was that she has even more wit than she allows to appear on the surface."
"Ah! do you think so? I must say that it seems to me that she doesn"t hide what wit she has."
I saw that I should have difficulty in extricating myself; when one has strayed into a bad road, it"s the devil and all to get back to solid ground. And then, too, that Monsieur Sordeville had an embarra.s.sing way of making one talk. The bride"s brother happened to be pa.s.sing us at that moment. He stopped and said to Monsieur Sordeville:
"Of whom are you speaking?"
"Madame Dauberny."
"Madame Dauberny! Oh! she"s a _gaillarde_, she is!"
Monsieur Sordeville raised his eyebrows slightly as he replied:
"Hum! that word is a little strong!"
"Why so? I mean by _gaillarde_ a decided character, which never bends, and does nothing except in accordance with its own desires; which takes its stand above a mult.i.tude of everyday prejudices, and snaps its fingers at what people will say. Indeed, Madame Frederique--she prefers to be called that, you know, for she detests her husband"s name--Madame Frederique, I say, makes no bones of declaring that she does only what she pleases, and that she intends to do everything that she pleases.
When a woman says that, I should say that one may well call her a _gaillarde_!"
Monsieur Sordeville smiled, and said simply:
"People say so many things that they don"t do! Sometimes, it is to obtain a reputation for originality."
"And you, monsieur," continued Archibald, turning to me, "you, who are one of Madame Frederique"s early friends, do not you share the opinion of her which I have just expressed?"
I saw that Monsieur Sordeville was covertly watching me, and I replied, measuring my words:
"Since I have had the honor of knowing Madame Dauberny, monsieur, I have always recognized in her the possessor of many invaluable qualities, and a keen wit, slightly satirical perhaps; as for her faults, I know of none; but clever people are becoming so scarce that they may well pa.s.s for originals."
My interlocutors held their peace. Monsieur Sordeville shook his head, and Monsieur Archibald pursed his lips. The orchestra played the prelude to a quadrille. I determined to perform a n.o.ble deed, which would put me on good terms with the bride"s family: I invited Mademoiselle Joliette to dance.
The ugly child accepted with unbounded delight. While we were dancing, I saw Madame Dauberny looking at me with a smile that seemed to say:
"That"s a very clever thing you are doing."
For my own part, I hoped to reward myself in the next quadrille by inviting the seductive Armantine.
But while we were executing the final figure, a great uproar suddenly arose outside the door; people were shouting and quarrelling in the corridor, and I fancied that I recognized Balloquet"s voice. Either he had not been so fortunate as I, or he had been guilty of some imprudence. I ran in the direction of the outcry.
XII
THE WEDDING PARTY IN THE REAR ROOM
As I stepped out into the hall which separated the two ballrooms, the dispute seemed to be growing warmer. I could distinguish Balloquet"s voice perfectly, shouting:
"Once more, messieurs, I tell you it"s a mistake, a simple mistake. What the devil! any man may be mistaken. I mistook one party for the other.
Wedding parties are a good deal alike, as a rule, especially after the dancing begins. There"s not enough harm done to whip a cat for."