"Ma foi! I know not," replied Raoul, "except that the Duke of Orleans will take his rightful place, as the King's uncle, at the head of affairs. Parliament, of course, will have to be suppressed, Condé bought over—as usual he will want the lion's share of the spoils—while De Retz must be kept quiet with a Cardinal's hat. He expects to be made minister in Mazarin's stead, but that is a fool's dream."
"But, suppose that, after all, Mazarin should win the game?"
"Bah! it is impossible. We are too strong for him. I will tell you a secret. In a month at the outside——"
I stopped him hurriedly, exclaiming, "Be careful, Raoul, or you may tell too much."
Looking at me in consternation, he said slowly, "You do not mean to suggest that you have gone over to Mazarin?"
"At least I have taken service with him."
"Then we shall be fighting on opposite sides! What a wretched business it is, breaking up old friendships in this way!"
"Ours need not be broken; and as to your party schemes against the Cardinal, they are bound to fail. There are too many traitors among you. Mazarin learns of your plots as soon as they are formed, and you wonder at his skill in evading them! Why, he has nothing to do but sit still and watch you destroy each other."
"A pleasant prospect!" exclaimed Raoul; "but now about yourself. You have not yet explained how you became a Mazarin, and it is difficult to distinguish the truth among a host of fables."
"It will be more difficult for you to believe it;" upon which I recounted my various adventures since arriving in the city.