"But?" questioned Bertha.
"But to-day," said the old man, with a sigh, "I doubt everything."
"Come, come!" cried the marquis; "all this is time lost. My horse! bring my horse! and in ten minutes I shall know the truth."
But Bertha stopped him.
"Ha!" he exclaimed; "is this the way I am obeyed in this house? What can I expect from others if in my own family no one obeys my orders?"
"Your orders are sacred, father," said Bertha,--"to your daughters, above all; but your ardor is carrying you away. Do not forget that those for whose safety we are so anxious are merely peasants in the eyes of others. If the Marquis de Souday goes himself in search of two missing peasants their importance will be known directly, and the news will reach our enemies."
"Mademoiselle Bertha is right," said Jean Oullier; "it is better for me to go."
"Not you, any more than my father," said Bertha.
"Why not?"
"Because you run too great a risk in going over there."