Mrs. Baron cried out in startled tones, while the Colonel's overcast brow was wondrously lightened, and Denham sprang to his feet with almost the energy of old days.
"Oui, oui, Monsieur—grâce à Dieu—it is good news that I have the happiness to bring. Monsieur is no longer in that frightful Bitche. He is by now, I sincerely hope, safe in his own country. Oui, Monsieur, I travelled with him, and I stayed with him till he left France—in an English vessel bound for England. It was long waiting for a vessel, but the opportunity came at last. And I have returned, as I promised cette bonne demoiselle that I would assuredly do. I have found my way to Verdun, to set the hearts of monsieur's friends at rest—the heart of Madame sa Mère, and of Monsieur son Père, and of Monsieur le Capitaine. I grieve to see Monsieur still si malade. But Monsieur Roy is safe—out of reach of l'Empéreur."
Jean had to stop, for Lucille was crying; and Mrs. Baron was clinging to her husband, overcome by the very joy of relief; and the Colonel could only choke when he tried to speak; and Denham, no less voiceless, had grasped Jean's hand in gratitude.
"Mais, Monsieur—mais, Madame—mais, Mademoiselle —I have done nothing, truly nothing at all. Save that which cette bonne demoiselle desired me to do. And truly, for the matter of thanks, that which ces messieurs did in the past for me and my mother can never be forgotten."
Then Jean's voice failed him too.
[CHAPTER XXXIV]
AT SALAMANCA
"WHAT wouldn't Den give to be here?" murmured Roy.
He stood in the splendid Plaza of the fine old Spanish town, Salamanca. It was an enormous square, perhaps hardly to be outdone in Europe as to size, having been built to hold as many as twenty thousand people, on the occasion of a great bull-fight. On one side stood the buildings devoted to municipal functions, and around ran an arcade formed of nearly one hundred arches.
Salamanca had been named as the rendezvous for the British Army, coming in detachments and by different routes from Portugal. During the last fortnight one body of men after another had arrived, all full of life and energy, all burning to meet the foe.