“I am ready, doctor, and I beg you to give me a bed in your house for the present. During the last ten days I have had a burning fever.”
While Lord Elliot was driving off, Camilla and le beau cousin stood confronting each other; neither dared to break the fearful silence, or even to look at each other.
Suddenly the door opened, and General von Saldern, the adjutant of the king, entered the room. Camilla had not the strength to advance to meet him; she returned his salutation by a faint inclination of the head. The general did not appear to see Kindar, and made no response to his profound bow.
“Madame,” said the general, solemnly, “I come at the command of the king; by his authority as king and judge, and as head of the church, he has annulled your marriage with Lord Elliot. This was done as a proof of his regard to Lord Elliot. Out of regard to your own family, he insists upon your immediate marriage with Baron Kindar, who has been dismissed from the king’s service.”
“No, no,” cried Camilla, “I will never marry him! Leave me, sir—I will never become the wife of this man!”
“It is his majesty’s express command that you should be married without delay,” said General Saldern; “he has also commanded me to say to you that this scandalous intrigue, insulting to morals and good manners, should no longer be brought before the public. You are both, therefore, banished from his court, from Potsdam and Berlin, and commanded to take refuge at your country seat, and lead there a solitary and quiet life. This is the only punishment he inflicts upon you, and I have nothing more to announce. If agreeable to you, madame, we will go at once!”
“Where?” cried Camilla, drawing back in terror from the general, who approached her.
“In the next room, madame, a priest is waiting, who, at the express command of his majesty, will now perform the marriage ceremony.”
Camilla uttered a loud shriek and fell senseless into the arms of le beau cousin, who advanced toward her at a nod from the general. When consciousness returned, the priest was before her and Kindar at her side. The ceremony was performed, and the unhappy couple left Berlin at once, never to return. The remainder of their lives was passed in sorrow, solitude, and self-contempt.