“You are no longer a minister, my lord; you are a prisoner.”
“Then, on the honor of a Mazarin, as I am and ever shall be, I hope,” said the cardinal.
“Hem,” replied D’Artagnan. “I have heard speak of a Mazarin who had not much religion when his oaths were in question. I fear he may have been an ancestor of your eminence.”
“Monsieur d’Artagnan, you are a great wit and I am really sorry to be on bad terms with you.”
“My lord, let us come to terms; I ask nothing better.”
“Very well,” said Mazarin, “if I place you in security, in a manner evident, palpable——”
“Ah! that is another thing,” said Porthos.
“Let us see,” said Athos.
“Let us see,” said D’Artagnan.
“In the first place, do you accept?” asked the cardinal.