Thélénie bit her lips angrily; then she cried abruptly:
“Ah! you are Madame Dalmont, no doubt?”
“I am Madame Dalmont.”
“I might have guessed as much. Ha! ha! ha! I have frequently heard of madame and her little friend, Mademoiselle Agathe! Ha! ha! You ladies are very well known in Chelles.”
“I think not, madame, as we see very few people.”
“But you are much talked about all the same!”
“It is quite possible, madame; there are people whose sole occupation is gossip, slander, calumny. But what comes from the mouths of those people is not worth thinking about, really!”
“Do you mean that for me, madame?”
“How could I mean it for you? I do not know you!”
“I am Madame de Belleville, and I am not in the habit of putting up with an insult from anybody, no matter who it may be.”