"The unhappy fate that has come between you is a secret to me, and one I do not wish to fathom. The fault, my friend,--pardon my usual frankness,--must be with you; for I know her, and will answer for it that you were loved with a rare, pure, and fervent affection."
"Oh, your Highness, you cut me to the heart!"
"I must do so, count, if I am to be of use to you; and this is the only occasion upon which I can. That you love Cornelia Erwing with the first real passion of your life I see by the deep sorrow expressed in your outward appearance, as well as your acts and conduct; and I hail this mood with joy, count, as the gloomy twilight which precedes the dawn of a new day."
"Princess, you do not know what I suffer. If I ever sinned against a noble heart, I am now making bitter atonement. Pity me; do not triumph in my anguish."
"Oh, how greatly you misunderstand me, count I triumph in your anguish! May God keep me from such a thought! I rejoice because your sorrows are a proof of a salutary change in your heart! I rejoice that you love deeply, truly, sadly; because I hope to be able to restore that to which your heart clings so loyally!"
"Could you do so, your Highness?" whispered Heinrich, his eyes sparkling with new life.
"Cornelia Erwing conceals her residence from you. Have you searched for her?"
"I have summoned the police of the whole country to my aid, left no means untried, but all in vain."
"Why did you do that?"
"Why?" asked Ottmar, in astonishment. "Because I wished to win her, to have her again."