"She thanked me for saving you from the bull, though I wanted no thanks."
"Nothing more?"
"Only once," Seth returned, "and then she said almost the same words as she did when I first saw you lying on her knee. 'See that he comes to no harm, Seth.' She sent for me the night before she died, Master Richard. That's why I'm here. I didn't want to leave Virginia particularly."
Barrington might have expressed some regret for bringing his companion to France had not his horse suddenly demanded his attention. They had traversed the long stretch of straight road, and were passing by a thin wood of young trees. Long grass bordered the road on either side, and Barrington's horse suddenly shied and became restive.
"There's something lying there," said Seth, whose eyes were suddenly focused on the ground, and then he dismounted quickly. "It's a man, Master Richard, and by the Lord! he's had rough treatment."
Barrington quieted his horse with soothing words, and dismounting, tethered him to a gate.
"He's not dead," Seth said, as Barrington bent over him; and as if to endorse his words, the man moved slightly and groaned.
"We can't leave him, but—"
"But we shall not reach Paris to-night," Seth returned. "Didn't they tell us we should pass by a village? I have forgotten the name."
"Trémont," said Richard.