"This is great news, my children, and the whole policy of the government will be turned topsy-turvy once more. But which of you had the idea——"
"I, monsieur," said Adamas, triumphantly; "as soon as Madame Lauriane said: 'That stranger who is closeted with monsieur le marquis is the prince and no other,' we all four hid in the little passage that you know of."
"We were worried about you," said Mario, "on account of that big escort of men who had a suspicious, threatening sort of look. Adamas suddenly thought of what he afterwards did and said."
"Master Jovelin was none too anxious to lend a hand," added Adamas; "but we had to save you, there was no time to reflect, and he played his part cleverly enough, didn't he, monsieur? Now he has his fortune in his own hands, and if he chooses to replace, or at least to equal in favor the prince's famous astrologer, who has predicted that he would be King of France at thirty-four——"
"I noticed," said the marquis to Jovelin, "that you could not make up your mind to give him that promise. You simply told him that he had that ambition. But what shall we do now, my friends? for, as you say, we are basely betrayed, and we are exposed to many perils of which we have never thought."
"We must do nothing, keep perfectly quiet," said Lauriane with decision. "The prince is galloping south at this moment and will not think of us again for some time."
"That is true," said the marquis; "he is off at full speed, in order to reach the king's side first, and to grasp the power that Monsieur de Luynes enjoyed, if not the favor. He will have to fight hard for it! Retz, Schomberg and Puisieux will want their share of the cake, to say nothing of the fact that madame the queen-mother and her little Bishop of Luçon will give them some thread to wind! Bah! our petty affairs have already gone out of our good prince's head, and will never enter it again perhaps. If only he did not issue any orders against us before he came hither!"
"No, monsieur, there is no danger!" said Adamas. "He had his eye on your treasure, the amount of which must have been grossly exaggerated to him, since so great a prince does us the honor to call upon us for so small a matter. Now we are warned; we can easily hide our little hoard and leave trunks filled with débris for the satisfaction of the curious. The secret exit from the château will be kept in good condition, and we will be on our guard against people who ask for shelter from the rain. But be assured that, if the prince does not come here again in person, nobody else will think of doing it; for if he has given any orders at all, they are that no one shall come and put his hand on the dish upon which he has placed his powerful paw."
Adamas's reasoning was very sound. He concluded by calling down a thousand maledictions on Bellinde, who alone could have discovered and divulged Master Jovelin's real name, the death of D'Alvimar and the existence of the treasure.
It was decided that they should consult with Guillaume d'Ars as to the propriety of announcing D'Alvimar's death or continuing to keep it secret; and to that end the marquis called upon him the following day, in the afternoon.