"Mine! you are mocking me again."
"Not in the least. You shall buy it from me, if you please."
"At what price?" asked Auriol bitterly.
"At a price you can easily pay," replied the other. "Come this way, and we will conclude the bargain."
Proceeding towards the farther end of the room, they entered a small exquisitely-furnished chamber, surrounded with sofas of the most luxurious description. In the midst was a table, on which writing materials were placed.
"It were a fruitless boon to give you this house without the means of living in it," said Rougemont, carefully closing the door. "This pocket-book will furnish you with them."
