"All this, my dear Mdlle.Adrienne, is wisely planned.You will, as the saw says, kill two birds with one stone--or rather, you will obtain by one act of kindness two acts of justice; you will destroy a dangerous calumny, and restore a worthy youth to liberty."
"Come," said Adrienne, laughing, "thanks to this pleasing prospect, my light heart has returned."
"How true that in life," said the doctor, philosophically, "everything depends on the point of view."
Adrienne was so completely ignorant of the forms of a constitutional government, and had so blind a confidence in the doctor, that she did not doubt for an instant what he told her.She therefore resumed with joy:
"What happiness it will be! when I go to fetch the daughters of Marshal Simon, to be able to console this workman's mother, who is now perhaps in a state of cruel anxiety, at not seeing her son return home!"
"Yes, you will have this pleasure," said M.Baleinier, with a smile; "for we will solicit and intrigue to such purpose, that the good, mother may learn from you the release of her son before she even knows that he has been arrested."
"How kind, how obliging you are!" said Adrienne."Really, if the motive were not so serious, I should he ashamed of making you lose so much precious time, my dear M.Baleinier.But I know your heart."
"I have no other wish, than to prove to you my profound devotion, my sincere attachment," said the doctor inhaling a pinch of snuff.But at the same time, he cast an uneasy glance through the window, for the carriage was just crossing the Place de l'Odeon, and in spite of the snow, he could see the front of the Odeon theatre brilliantly illuminated.Now Adrienne, who had just turned her head towards that side, might perhaps be astonished at the singular road they were taking.
In order to draw off her attention by a skillful diversion, the doctor exclaimed suddenly: "Bless me! I had almost forgotten."