"Well, madame," said De Winter, when the queen had dismissedher attendants.

"Well, my lord, what I foresaw has come to pass."

"What? does the cardinal refuse to receive the king? Francerefuse hospitality to an unfortunate prince? Ay, but it isfor the first time, madame!"

"I did not say France, my lord; I said the cardinal, and thecardinal is not even a Frenchman."

"But did you see the queen?"

"It is useless," replied Henrietta, "the queen will not sayyes when the cardinal says no. Are you not aware that thisItalian directs everything, both indoors and out? Andmoreover, I should not be surprised had we been forestalledby Cromwell. He was embarrassed whilst speaking to me andyet quite firm in his determination to refuse. Then did younot observe the agitation in the Palais Royal, the passingto and fro of busy people? Can they have received any news,my lord?"

"Not from England, madame. I made such haste that I amcertain of not having been forestalled. I set out three daysago, passing miraculously through the Puritan army, and Itook post horses with my servant Tony; the horses upon whichwe were mounted were bought in Paris. Besides, the king, Iam certain, awaits your majesty's reply before riskinganything."

"You will tell him, my lord," resumed the queen,despairingly, "that I can do nothing; that I have sufferedas much as himself - more than he has - obliged as I am toeat the bread of exile and to ask hospitality from falsefriends who smile at my tears; and as regards his royalperson, he must sacrifice it generously and die like a king.I shall go and die by his side."

"Madame, madame," exclaimed De Winter, "your majestyabandons yourself to despair; and yet, perhaps, there stillremains some hope."

"No friends left, my lord; no other friends left in the wideworld but yourself! Oh, God!" exclaimed the poor queen,raising her eyes to Heaven, "have You indeed taken back allthe generous hearts that once existed in the world?"

"I hope not, madame," replied De Winter, thoughtfully; "Ionce spoke to you of four men."

"What can be done with four?"

"Four devoted, resolute men can do much? assure yourself,madame; and those of whom I speak performed great things atone time."

"And where are these four men?"

"Ah, that is what I do not know. It is twenty years since Isaw them, and yet whenever I have seen the king in danger Ihave thought of them."

"And these men were your friends?"

"One of them held my life in his hands and gave it to me. Iknow not whether he is still my friend, but since that timeI have remained his."

"And these men are in France, my lord?"

"I believe so."

"Tell me their names; perhaps I may have heard themmentioned and might be able to aid you in finding them."

"One of them was called the Chevalier d'Artagnan."

"Ah, my lord, if I mistake not, the Chevalier d'Artagnan islieutenant of royal guards; but take care, for I fear thatthis man is entirely devoted to the cardinal."

"That would be a misfortune," said De Winter, "and I shallbegin to think that we are really doomed."

"But the others," said the queen, who clung to this lasthope as a shipwrecked man clings to the hull of his vessel."The others, my lord!"

"The second - I heard his name by chance; for beforefighting us, these four gentlemen told us their names; thesecond was called the Comte de la Fere. As for the twoothers, I had so much the habit of calling them by nicknamesthat I have forgotten their real ones."

"Oh, mon Dieu, it is a matter of the greatest urgency tofind them out," said the queen, "since you think theseworthy gentlemen might be so useful to the king."

"Oh, yes," said De Winter, "for they are the same men.Listen, madame, and recall your remembrances. Have you neverheard that Queen Anne of Austria was once saved from thegreatest danger ever incurred by a queen?"

"Yes, at the time of her relations with Monsieur deBuckingham; it had to do in some way with certain studs anddiamonds."

"Well, it was that affair, madame; these men are the oneswho saved her; and I smile with pity when I reflect that ifthe names of those gentlemen are unknown to you it isbecause the queen has forgotten them, who ought to have madethem the first noblemen of the realm."

"Well, then, my lord, they must be found; but what can fourmen, or rather three men do - for I tell you, you must notcount on Monsieur d'Artagnan."

"It will be one valiant sword the less, but there willremain still three, without reckoning my own; now fourdevoted men around the king to protect him from his enemies,to be at his side in battle, to aid him with counsel, toescort him in flight, are sufficient, not to make the king aconqueror, but to save him if conquered; and whateverMazarin may say, once on the shores of France your royalhusband may find as many retreats and asylums as the seabirdfinds in a storm."

"Seek, then, my lord, seek these gentlemen; and if they willconsent to go with you to England, I will give to each aduchy the day that we reascend the throne, besides as muchgold as would pave Whitehall. Seek them, my lord, and findthem, I conjure you."

"I will search for them, madame," said De Winter "anddoubtless I shall find them; but time fails me. Has yourmajesty forgotten that the king expects your reply andawaits it in agony?"

"Then indeed we are lost!" cried the queen, in the fullnessof a broken heart.

At this moment the door opened and the young Henriettaappeared; then the queen, with that wonderful strength whichis the privilege of parents, repressed her tears andmotioned to De Winter to change the subject.

But that act of self-control, effective as it was, did notescape the eyes of the young princess. She stopped on thethreshold, breathed a sigh, and addressing the queen:

"Why, then, do you always weep, mother, when I am away fromyou?" she said.

The queen smiled, but instead of answering:

"See, De Winter," she said, "I have at least gained onething in being only half a queen; and that is that mychildren call me `mother' instead of `madame.'"

Then turning toward her daughter:

"What do you want, Henrietta?" she demanded.

"My mother," replied the young princess, "a cavalier hasjust entered the Louvre and wishes to present his respectsto your majesty; he arrives from the army and has, he says,a letter to remit to you, on the part of the Marechal deGrammont, I think."

"Ah!" said the queen to De Winter, "he is one of my faithfuladherents; but do you not observe, my dear lord, that we areso poorly served that it is left to my daughter to fill theoffice of doorkeeper?"

"Madame, have pity on me," exclaimed De Winter; "you wringmy heart!"

"And who is this cavalier, Henrietta?" asked the queen.

"I saw him from the window, madame; he is a young man thatappears scarce sixteen years of age, and is called theViscount de Bragelonne."

The queen, smiling, made a sign with her head; the youngprincess opened the door and Raoul appeared on thethreshold.

Advancing a few steps toward the queen, he knelt down.

"Madame," said he, "I bear to your majesty a letter from myfriend the Count de Guiche, who told me he had the honor ofbeing your servant; this letter contains important news andthe expression of his respect."

At the name of the Count de Guiche a blush spread over thecheeks of the young princess and the queen glanced at herwith some degree of severity.

"You told me that the letter was from the Marechal deGrammont, Henrietta!" said the queen.

"I thought so, madame," stammered the young girl.

"It is my fault, madame," said Raoul. "I did announcemyself, in truth, as coming on the part of the Marechal deGrammont; but being wounded in the right arm he was unableto write and therefore the Count de Guiche acted as hissecretary."

"There has been fighting, then?" asked the queen, motioningto Raoul to rise.

"Yes, madame," said the young man.

At this announcement of a battle having taken place, theprincess opened her mouth as though to ask a question ofinterest; but her lips closed again without articulating aword, while the color gradually faded from her cheeks.

The queen saw this, and doubtless her maternal hearttranslated the emotion, for addressing Raoul again:

"And no evil has happened to the young Count de Guiche?" sheasked; "for not only is he our servant, as you say, sir, butmore - he is one of our friends."

"No, madame," replied Raoul; "on the contrary, he gainedgreat glory and had the honor of being embraced by hishighness, the prince, on the field of battle."

The young princess clapped her hands; and then, ashamed ofhaving been betrayed into such a demonstration of joy, shehalf turned away and bent over a vase of roses, as if toinhale their odor.

"Let us see," said the queen, "what the count says." And sheopened the letter and read:

"Madame, - Being unable to have the honor of writing to youmyself, by reason of a wound I have received in my righthand, I have commanded my son, the Count de Guiche, who,with his father, is equally your humble servant, to write totell you that we have just gained the battle of Lens, andthat this victory cannot fail to give great power toCardinal Mazarin and to the queen over the affairs ofEurope. If her majesty will have faith in my counsels sheought to profit by this event to address at this moment, infavor of her august husband, the court of France. TheVicomte de Bragelonne, who will have the honor of remittingthis letter to your majesty, is the friend of my son, whoowes to him his life; he is a gentleman in whom your majestymay confide entirely, in case your majesty may have someverbal or written order to remit to me.

"I have the honor to be, with respect, etc.,

"Marechal de Grammont."

At the moment mention occurred of his having rendered aservice to the count, Raoul could not help turning hisglance toward the young princess, and then he saw in hereyes an expression of infinite gratitude to the young man;he no longer doubted that the daughter of King Charles I.loved his friend.

"The battle of Lens gained!" said the queen; "they are luckyhere indeed; they can gain battles! Yes, the Marechal deGrammont is right; this will change the aspect of Frenchaffairs, but I much fear it will do nothing for English,even if it does not harm them. This is recent news, sir,"continued she, "and I thank you for having made such hasteto bring it to me; without this letter I should not haveheard till to-morrow, perhaps after to-morrow - the last ofall Paris."

"Madame," said Raoul, "the Louvre is but the second palacethis news has reached; it is as yet unknown to all, and Ihad sworn to the Count de Guiche to remit this letter toyour majesty before even I should embrace my guardian."

"Your guardian! is he, too, a Bragelonne?" asked Lord deWinter. "I once knew a Bragelonne - is he still alive?"

"No, sir, he is dead; and I believe it is from him myguardian, whose near relation he was, inherited the estatefrom which I take my name."

"And your guardian, sir," asked the queen, who could nothelp feeling some interest in the handsome young man beforeher, "what is his name?"

"The Comte de la Fere, madame," replied the young man,bowing.

De Winter made a gesture of surprise and the queen turned tohim with a start of joy.

"The Comte de la Fere!" she cried. "Have you not mentionedthat name to me?"

As for De Winter he could scarcely believe that he had heardaright. "The Comte de la Fere!" he cried in his turn. "Oh,sir, reply, I entreat you - is not the Comte de la Fere anoble whom I remember, handsome and brave, a musketeer underLouis XIII., who must be now about forty-seven orforty-eight years of age?"

"Yes, sir, you are right in every particular!"

"And who served under an assumed name?"

"Under the name of Athos. Latterly I heard his friend,Monsieur d'Artagnan, give him that name."

"That is it, madame, that is the same. God be praised! Andhe is in Paris?" continued he, addressing Raoul; thenturning to the queen: "We may still hope. Providence hasdeclared for us, since I have found this brave man again inso miraculous a manner. And, sir, where does he reside,pray?"

"The Comte de la Fere lodges in the Rue Guenegaud, Hotel duGrand Roi Charlemagne."

"Thanks, sir. Inform this dear friend that he may remainwithin, that I shall go and see him immediately."

"Sir, I obey with pleasure, if her majesty will permit me todepart."

"Go, Monsieur de Bragelonne," said the queen, "and restassured of our affection."

Raoul bent respectfully before the two princesses, andbowing to De Winter, departed.

The queen and De Winter continued to converse for some timein low voices, in order that the young princess should notoverhear them; but the precaution was needless: she was indeep converse with her own thoughts.

Then, when De Winter rose to take leave:

"Listen, my lord," said the queen; "I have preserved thisdiamond cross which came from my mother, and this order ofSt. Michael which came from my husband. They are worth aboutfifty thousand pounds. I had sworn to die of hunger ratherthan part with these precious pledges; but now that thisornament may be useful to him or his defenders, everythingmust be sacrificed. Take them, and if you need money foryour expedition, sell them fearlessly, my lord. But shouldyou find the means of retaining them, remember, my lord,that I shall esteem you as having rendered the greatestservice that a gentleman can render to a queen; and in theday of my prosperity he who brings me this order and thiscross shall be blessed by me and my children."

"Madame," replied De Winter, "your majesty will be served bya man devoted to you. I hasten to deposit these two objectsin a safe place, nor should I accept them if the resourcesof our ancient fortune were left to us, but our estates areconfiscated, our ready money is exhausted, and we arereduced to turn to service everything we possess. In an hourhence I shall be with the Comte de la Fere, and to-morrowyour majesty shall have a definite reply."

The queen tendered her hand to Lord de Winter, who, kissingit respectfully, went out and traversed alone andunconducted those large, dark and deserted apartments,brushing away tears which, blase as he was by fifty yearsspent as a courtier, he could not withhold at the spectacleof royal distress so dignified, yet so intense.