"Well!" said the queen mother, "I asked for the mistress, not the servant."
"Madame," said Gillonne, "I thought I ought to come myself and tell your majesty that the Queen of Navarre has gone out with her friend the Duchesse de Nevers"—
"Gone out at this hour!" exclaimed Catharine, frowning; "where can she have gone?"
"To a lecture on chemistry," replied Gillonne, "which is to be held in the Hôtel de Guise, in the pavilion occupied by Madame de Nevers."
"When will she return?" asked the queen mother.
"The lecture will last until late into the night," replied Gillonne, "so that probably her majesty will stay with her friend until to-morrow morning."
"The Queen of Navarre is happy," murmured Catharine; "she has friends and she is queen; she wears a crown, is called your majesty, yet has no subjects. She is happy indeed."
After this remark, which made her listeners smile inwardly:
"Well," murmured Catharine, "since she has gone out—for she has gone, you say?"
"Half an hour ago, madame."