"O heavens! He is wounded!"
"No, no, nothing has happened to him, but it was necessary to his safety that he should leave Paris immediately; had he not done so they would have arrested him; he therefore left for the country."
"He left without me?"
"Let me finish; you should have been married here, in place of which you will be married at his house; but to quiet Urbain's anxiety I had to promise that tonight you should rejoin him."
"Oh, at once, my friend, as soon as you please; but why did he not take me with him?"
"That was impossible; Urbain had not an instant to lose; by a lucky chance, one of my friends is sending his valet into the country to find a wife. The carriage will come to take you in an hour. Get ready, therefore. He will charge you nothing and you will find everything down there that you need—do you understand me?"
"Oh, I shall be ready in a moment, and what about Marguerite?"
"She can follow you later; I need her to make divers arrangements. In a few days I shall come to see you. I'll leave you now; make your preparations. I shall come for you when the carriage arrives."
The barber departed, and Blanche, who had not the slightest suspicion that anyone would deceive her, continued her toilet.
"Poor Urbain," she said to herself, "I was sure that something would happen to him; and he, also, had a presentiment. How fortunate that he was able to escape; but I shall rejoin him and I shall nevermore leave him."