'dorothee!' said emily solemnly, 'i am interested in the cause of that grief, more so, perhaps, than you may imagine; and i entreat, that you will no longer refuse to indulge my curiosity;--it is not a common one.'
as emily said this, she remembered the papers, with which the picture had been found, and had scarcely a doubt, that they had concerned the marchioness de villeroi; but with this supposition came a scruple, whether she ought to enquire further on a subject, which might prove to be the same, that her father had so carefully endeavoured to conceal.her curiosity, concerning the marchioness, powerful as it was, it is probable she would now have resisted, as she had formerly done, on unwarily observing the few terrible words in the papers, which had never since been erased from her memory, had she been certain that the history of that lady was the subject of those papers, or, that such simple particulars only as it was probable dorothee could relate were included in her father's command.what was known to her could be no secret to many other persons; and, since it appeared very unlikely, that st.aubert should attempt to conceal what emily might learn by ordinary means, she at length concluded, that, if the papers had related to the story of the marchioness, it was not those circumstances of it, which dorothee could disclose, that he had thought sufficiently important to wish to have concealed.
she, therefore, no longer hesitated to make the enquiries, that might lead to the gratification of her curiosity.
'ah, ma'amselle!' said dorothee, 'it is a sad story, and cannot be told now: but what am i saying? i never will tell it.many years have passed, since it happened; and i never loved to talk of the marchioness to any body, but my husband.he lived in the family, at that time, as well as myself, and he knew many particulars from me, which nobody else did; for i was about the person of my lady in her last illness, and saw and heard as much, or more than my lord himself.sweet saint! how patient she was! when she died, i thought i could have died with her!'