"Come, come, no more of such weakness. It is by cherishing such ideas, it is in listening thus, that one falls really sick. And I have the time, truly! Must I not occupy myself in finding some work for Claire and myself, since this man, who gave us engravings to color--"
Then, after a pause, she added, with indignation, "Oh! this is abominable, to offer this work at the price of Claire"s--to take from us this miserable means of existence, because I would not allow my child to go and work at his rooms! Perhaps we may find work elsewhere; but when one knows n.o.body, it is so difficult! When one is so miserably lodged they inspire no confidence; and yet, the small sum that remains once gone, what shall we do? what will become of us?
"If the laws leave this crime unpunished, I will not--for, if fate pushes me to the end--if I do not find the means to emerge from the atrocious position in which this wretch has placed me and my child, I do not know what I shall do--I shall be capable of killing him--I-- this man--then they can do what they will with me. Yes--but my child?
my child?
"To leave her alone, abandoned--ah! no, I do not wish to die! for this, I cannot kill this man. What would become of her? She, at sixteen--she is young, and pure as an angel; but she is handsome--but misery, hunger, abandonment--what may they not cause? and then--and then--into what abyss may she not fall?
"Oh! it is frightful--poverty! frightful enough for any one; but perhaps more so for those who have always lived in opulence. I cannot beg--I must absolutely see my child starve before I can beg! What a coward--yet--"
Two or three violent knocks at the door made her tremble, and awoke her daughter with a start.
"Mamma, what is that?" cried Claire, sitting up in bed; then, throwing her arms around her mother"s neck, who, very much alarmed, pressed her child to her bosom, "Mamma, what is it?" repeated Claire.
"I do not know, my child; but do not be afraid, it is nothing: some one knocked; it is, perhaps, the letter we expect."
At this moment the worm-eaten door shook again, under repeated blows with the fist.
"Who is there?" said Madame de Fermont in a trembling voice.
A coa.r.s.e, rough voice answered, "Are you deaf, neighbors?"
"What do you want? I do not know you," said Madame de Fermont, trying to conceal the agitation of her voice.
"I am Robin, your neighbor; give me some fire to light my pipe: come, make haste!"
"It is that lame man, who is always drunk," said the mother to her child.
"Are you going to give me any fire! or I"ll break all open, in the name of thunder?"
"Sir, I have no fire."
"You must have some matches, then; everybody has them; do you open-- come?"
"Sir, go away."
"You won"t open?--one, two--"
"I beg you to go away, or I will call."
"Once--twice--three times--no, you won"t! Then I"ll break all down, then."
And the wretch gave such a furious kick against the door, he burst it in, the miserable lock breaking at the first a.s.sault. The two women screamed with alarm. Madame de Fermont, notwithstanding her weakness, threw herself before the rough, and barred his entrance.
"This is outrageous: you shall not come in," cried the unhappy mother; "I shall cry for help."
"For what--for what?" answered he: "mustn"t we be neighborly? If you had opened, I should not have broken in."
Then, with the stupid obstinacy of drunkenness, he added staggering, "I wish to come in; I will come in, and I will not go out until I light my pipe."
"I have neither fire nor matches. In the name of heaven, sir, retire."
"It"s not true; you say that so I sha"n"t see the little one in bed.
Yesterday you stopped up all the holes in the door. She is pretty; I want to see her. Take care of yourself; I"ll scratch your face if you don"t let me come in. I tell you that I will see the little one in bed, and I will light my pipe, or I"ll smash everything, and you along with it!"
"Help! help!" cried Madame de Fermont, who felt the door giving way under the violent push of the lame man.
Intimidated by the cries, the man stepped backward and shook his fist at Madame de Fermont, saying, "You shall pay me for this; I will return to-night--I"ll catch hold of your tongue, and you cannot cry."
And the Big Cripple, as they called him at Ravageurs" Island, descended the stairs, uttering horrible oaths. Madame de Fermont, fearing that he might return, and seeing the lock broken, drew the table against the door to barricade it. Claire had been so alarmed at this horrible scene that she had fallen on her cot almost without emotion, with a violent attack of the nerves. Madame de Fermont, forgetting her own alarm, ran to her daughter, pressed her in her arms, made her drink a little water, and, with the most tender caresses, succeeded in calming her.
"Be composed, my poor child--the bad man has gone away." Then the wretched mother cried, with a touching accent, "Yet it is this notary who is the cause of all our troubles. Compose yourself, my child,"
resumed she, tenderly embracing her daughter; "this wretch is gone."
"Oh, mamma, if he should come back again? You see you have called for help, and no one has come. Oh! I entreat you; let us leave this house.
I shall die here with fear."
"How you tremble! you have a fever!"
"No, no," said the young girl, to pacify her mother; "it is nothing; it is fright; it will pa.s.s over; and you, how are you? Give me your hands. How burning hot they are! Ah! you are suffering; you wish to conceal it from me."
"Do not think so: I am better than ever; it is the emotion which this man has caused me which makes me thus. I slept on the chair very soundly; I only awoke when you did."
"Yet, mamma, your poor eyes are very red, much inflamed!"
"Ah! well, my child, on a chair sleep is not so refreshing, you know!"
"Really, do you not suffer?"
"No, no, I a.s.sure you; and you?"
"Nor I; only I tremble still from fear. I entreat you, mamma, let us leave this house."
"And where shall we go to? You know with how much trouble we found this wretched place; and, besides, we have paid two weeks in advance; they will not return us our money; and we have so little left--so little, that we should manage as closely as possible."
"Perhaps some day M. de Saint Remy will answer your letter."
"I no longer hope it; it is so long since I have written."
"He might not have received your letter: why do you not write him again? From hence to Angers is not so far; we shall soon have an answer."
"My poor child, you know how much this has cost me already."
"What do you risk? he is so good, notwithstanding his roughness. Was he not one of my father"s old friends, and, besides, he is our relation."
"But he is poor himself; his fortune is very small. Perhaps he does not reply, to avoid the mortification of being obliged to refuse us."
"But if he has not received your letter, mamma?"