“She thought he came here to catch her.”
“The deuce!”
“His piety seemed to her mere artifice.”
“Evidently!... Is any one ever converted without a motive?”
“You are a wicked creature, Albert. Louis may be a hypocrite, but all religious people are not hypocrites. I even begin to think he is not.”
“Come, go on!... Well, I see Eugénie regards him as a saint. She admires him, if nothing more. The danger is imminent.”
“What are you going to do? Nothing wrong, I hope.”
“Be easy on that score. I am going to keep an eye on that man, and study him. If he is sincere, I will make him ridiculous; if he is false, I will unmask him. Of course, I shall also employ other means. If Eugénie is not yet in love with him, I shall be the foremost to win her heart. If she is attached to him, I shall do my utmost to appear more worthy of her regard, and to rout him. It is unnecessary to say I shall persist in my rôle as a person of gravity. Eugénie is absurdly romantic. I must endeavor to appear more saintly than this new apostle. No one will suspect the farce. It is an age since I was here, and it would not be astonishing if I also had been converted during the interval.”
“Don’t go too far!”
“You may rely on that. There is only one thing I am anxious about. Have I not some invisible obstacle to contend against?... Eugénie has a will of her own. If she has already made up her mind, if her heart is set on him, all my attempts would be of no avail.”