登陆注册
15491300000066

第66章 CHAPTER XIII THE PERVERSITY OF DOVES(4)

"I am not openly devout," continued la Peyrade. "I go to mass at six every morning, that I may not be observed; I fast on Fridays; I am, in short, a son of the Church, and I would not undertake any serious enterprise without prayer, after the ancient fashion of our ancestors;but no one is able to notice my religion. A singular thing happened to our family during the Revolution of 1789, which attached us more closely than ever to our holy mother the Church. A poor young lady of the elder branch of the Peyrades, who owned the little estate of la Peyrade,--for we ourselves are Peyrades of Canquoelle, but the two branches inherit from one another,--well, this young lady married, six years before the Revolution, a barrister who, after the fashion of the times, was Voltairean, that is to say, an unbeliever, or, if you choose, a deist. He took up all the revolutionary ideas, and practised the charming rites that you know of in the worship of the goddess Reason. He came into our part of the country imbued with the ideas of the Convention, and fanatical about them. His wife was very handsome;he compelled her to play the part of Liberty; and the poor unfortunate creature went mad. She died insane! Well, as things are going now it looks as if we might have another 1793."This history, invented on the spot, made such an impression on Celeste's fresh and youthful imagination that she rose, bowed to the young men and hastened to her chamber.

"Ah! monsieur, why did you tell her that?" cried Felix, struck to the heart by the cold look the young girl, affecting profound indifference, cast upon him. She fancied herself transformed into a goddess of Reason.

"Why not? What were you talking about?" asked Theodose.

"About my indifference to religion."

"The great sore of this century," replied Theodose, gravely.

"I am ready," said Madame Colleville, appearing in a toilet of much taste. "But what is the matter with my poor daughter? She is crying!""Crying? madame," exclaimed Felix; "please tell her that I will study 'The Imitation of Christ' at once."Felix left the house with Theodose and Flavie, whose arm the barrister pressed to let her know he would explain in the carriage the apparent dementia of the young professor.

An hour later, Madame Colleville and Celeste, Colleville and Theodose were entering the Thuilliers' apartment to dine there. Theodose and Flavie took Thuillier into the garden, where the former said to him:--"Dear, good friend! you will have the cross within a week. Our charming friend here will tell you about our visit to the Comtesse du Bruel."And Theodose left Thuillier, having caught sight of Desroches in the act of being brought by Mademoiselle Thuillier into the garden; he went, driven by a terrible and glacial presentiment, to meet him.

"My good friend," said Desroches in his ear, "I have come to see if you can procure at once twenty-five thousand francs plus two thousand six hundred and eighty for costs.""Are you acting for Cerizet?" asked the barrister.

"Cerizet has put all the papers into the hands of Louchard, and you know what you have to expect if arrested. Is Cerizet wrong in thinking you have twenty-five thousand francs in your desk? He says you offered them to him and he thinks it only natural not to leave them in your hands.""Thank you for taking the step, my good friend," replied Theodose. "Ihave been expecting this attack."

"Between ourselves," replied Desroches, "you have made an utter fool of him, and he is furious. The scamp will stop at nothing to get his revenge upon you--for he'll lose everything if he forces you to fling your barrister's gown, as they say, to the nettles and go to prison.""I?" said Theodose. "I'm going to pay him. But even so, there will still be five notes of mine in his hands, for five thousand francs each; what does he mean to do with them?""Oh! after the affair of this morning, I can't tell you; my client is a crafty, mangy cur, and he is sure to have his little plans.""Look here, Desroches," said Theodose, taking the hard, unyielding attorney round the waist, "those papers are in your hands, are not they?""Will you pay them?"

"Yes, in three hours."

"Very good, then. Be at my office at nine o'clock; I'll receive the money and give you your notes; BUT, at half-past nine o'clock, they will be in the sheriff's hands.""To-night, then, at nine o'clock," said Theodose.

"Nine o'clock," repeated Desroches, whose glance had taken in the whole family, then assembled in the garden.

Celeste, with red eyes, was talking to her godmother; Colleville and Brigitte, Flavie and Thuillier were on the steps of the broad portico leading to the entrance-hall. Desroches remarked to Theodose, who followed him to the door:--"You can pay off those notes."

At a single glance the shrewd attorney had comprehended the whole scheme of the barrister.

同类推荐
热门推荐
  • 倒转流年:爱的誓言

    倒转流年:爱的誓言

    如果时间倒流,你会不会停下脚步回头看看我?只需要你的一个回眸,我一直都在等你好吗?我一直都在原地不曾走远过……
  • 杨留颂传奇

    杨留颂传奇

    江湖中名声在望的风雷堡突遭变故,堡主“铁面神”赵无双因闭关练功,一时不察,被当时唯一的徒弟“玉面诸葛”梅宏星带人戕害了整个风雷堡,并杀死了堡中上下二十二人,只有堡主“铁面神”赵无双侥幸逃离,被深山采药童子二黑子所救。赵无双大难不死,收二黑子为徒传授武学,并据其身世取名杨留颂,杨留颂艺成随师出山,重振风雷堡,匡扶武林正义,最终知晓四方钱庄的谢姑爷就是当年欺师灭祖的“玉面诸葛”梅宏星,查出其背后真实身份,并清理了门户,力挽江湖狂澜,最终成为武林一代至尊。
  • 蜜恋长歌Queen哪里跑

    蜜恋长歌Queen哪里跑

    某珩看着旁边挑着界面的某依,嘴角一勾,双手轻擦某依的腰间,一个用力就把某依环抱腿上,某依一把把腰上的咸猪手拍掉,“一边玩去”某依没好气的说到,然后心安理得的坐在某珩腿上做自己的事。某珩低头看着某依,眼神宠溺,却又感觉十分可怜。某珩看着自己好不容易拐到的媳妇,只想扑倒,扑倒,再扑倒,然后,“严煜珩,你丫的以后没有我允许不许碰我”嘻嘻,某无良作者保证此书一点甜到掉牙!!!
  • 仙剑奇侠传之剑饮星河

    仙剑奇侠传之剑饮星河

    或许在每个籼迷心中,都有一部属于自己的仙剑奇侠传。剑饮星河的内容仍是采用前一部作品偏游戏攻略的方式撰写,带领大家在游戏中游历冒险。剑饮星河的主题为“新生”,主要讲述自上古神魔之战后的一个复活蚩尤的法阵被终止引发了一系列变故,最终千年之后,几个来历各不相同的年轻人命运因此交织在了一起,一个心怀搏爱之心却背负着生生世世的恶毒诅咒,一个纯真善良却成为善与恶的枢纽,一个顽皮贪吃却对一人不离不弃,一个身为一派掌门却背负着不可能完成的使命,另外还有两人困于三生三世的情仇纠葛不知如何化解。且看主角团一同揭开了这场密布千年的疑云,给他们自己乃至纷纭六界都带来新的生机。
  • 盛世神医

    盛世神医

    他叫秦岳,一个普普通通的农民的儿子,他是他母亲的第一个孩纸也是她母亲唯一的孩纸。在他很小的时候,村里那年闹饥荒,他的父母为了让他能吃上一点米饭不惜冒着生命危险到地主家偷米结果父亲被打成了残疾,母亲也被打得不能再有孩纸了。可是祸不单行,家里没了顶梁柱家里的生活怎么办,他的母亲忍受不了这种生活便改了嫁,后来她的父亲一气之下便永远的丢下他,从那以后他便过上了有一顿没一顿的日子。终于,在那年,他12岁,他在沿街乞讨时遇见了一个怪老头,老头说他要收他做义子教他医术,于是他便随他上了山,从此他的生活发生了翻天覆地的变化。从小学徒到神医的路有多艰辛没有谁知道。。。。。
  • 大地之哥

    大地之哥

    我要守护这一片天地,我要变强。我始终相信,我是强者,百里挑一的强者
  • 进化树之末世编

    进化树之末世编

    2026年1月25日,一颗宽约8公里的大型陨石降临地球,坠入太平洋,带来洪水和一种未知的病毒。
  • 长庚记

    长庚记

    长庚星,即是太白金星,又叫做启明星。每当西方落日将尽,启明星就会冉冉升起,由此也开始了夜的轮回。那么,在这看似宁静的夜色之下,实际上隐藏着些什么?星空之上,无数的命运交织错落;星空之下,阴谋的气息已经四散而开。十六年前的那个夜晚,一位神秘老者在大湖边钓起一条隐世青龙;十六年后的某一天,绝世遗孤横空出世。他如何搅动满天风雨?又如何在风雨中踏歌前行?有朝一日,举世皆敌,他又如何一人独战这天下?
  • 万古仙决

    万古仙决

    仙路浩渺,缘劫自掌走过大世沉浮的仙与古流过杀伐情殇的血与泪越过传说长生的封仙天再回首,已是仙凡两隔,万古苍茫
  • 灭世刀狂

    灭世刀狂

    一个刀光剑影,血雨飘渺的江湖纷争,却被一个不入流的小子改变了,创下了不世的武林神话。