“Oh! I will buy all these jewels,” cried Chérubin. “Who would believe that there was a watch inside of this? What a pretty pin!—How much for them all, monsieur?”
Observing the young man’s enthusiasm over the jewels, Poterne thought that he might add a little more to the price.
“Twenty-five hundred francs in all,” he said.
Daréna turned his face away and bit his lips, while Chérubin ran to his cash drawer.
At sight of that drawer filled with gold pieces, Monsieur Poterne turned blue, his brow became wrinkled, his eyes increased in size and his nose shrunk. Daréna, observing his excitement, took advantage of the fact that Chérubin’s back was turned to administer a kick to his friend, muttering:
“I trust, you villain, that you have no detestable intentions; if I thought that you had, I would break every bone in your body.”
Poterne had no time to reply; he rubbed that portion of his anatomy which had been attacked, received the amount which Chérubin counted out to him in gold, and hastily took his leave. But he had hardly passed through the bedroom door when Daréna ran after him, saying:
“Excuse me, my young friend, I will return in a moment; I forgot to give my steward an important order.”
Hurrying after Poterne, who seemed anxious to avoid being overtaken, Daréna caught him on the stairs and seized him by his coat collar.
“Don’t go so fast,” he said; “you’re in a great hurry, you old scoundrel. Come, give me two thousand francs, in a hurry.”