"Well?" cried Fanfaro expectantly.
"Ah, Fanfaro, a great misfortune!"
"A misfortune? Does it concern the vicomte?"
"Yes; he has disappeared."
"But, Bobichel, why should that be a misfortune? Perhaps he went on a short journey."
"No, both Coucou and Madame Caraman maintain that his disappearance is a misfortune."
"Tell me all that has happened."
"Then listen. On the evening that the vicomte came back from the soiree, he did not go home directly, but first took an opportunity to rescue a wounded girl."
"A wounded girl?" repeated Fanfaro.
"Yes, a young girl who had been shot in the breast. She was brought by the vicomte to his house."