own, as if she had not found in
them, at once, what she sought, or was fearful of betraying her
presence to the persons whose voices might be heard murmuring in the
adjoining room; and, advancing with inaudible tread, she paused to
listen for a minute. The persons, however, spoke low; and finding that
her _espionage_ profited nothing to her, the royal spy passed on and
entered the apartment.

In a chair, turning his back to her, sat a young man at a table, upon
which papers and maps were mixed with jewellery, articles of dress,
feathers and laces. A pair of newly-fashioned large gilt spurs lay
upon a manuscript which appeared to contain a list of names; a naked
rapier, the hilt of which was of curious device and workmanship, was
carelessly thrust through a paper covered with notes of music. The
whole formed a strange mixture, indicative at once of pre-occupation
and listless _insouciance_, of grave employment and utter frivolity.
Before this seated personage stood another, who appeared to be
speaking to him earnestly and in low tones. At the sight of Catherine,
as she advanced, however, the latter person exclaimed quickly,

"My lord duke, her majesty the Queen-mother!"

The other person rose hastily, and in some alarm, from his chair;
whilst his companion took this opportunity to increase the confusion
upon the table, by pushing one or two other papers beneath some of the
articles of amusement or dress.

Without any appearance of remarking the embarrassment that was
pictured upon the young man's face, Catherine advanced to accept his
troubled greeting with a mild smile of tenderness, and said--

"Alencon, my son, I have a few matters of private business, upon which
I would confer with you--and alone."

The increasing embarrassment upon the face of the young Duke must have
been visible to any eye but that which did not choose to see it. After
a moment's hesitation, however, in which the habit of obeying
implicitly his mother's authority seemed to subdue his desire to avoid
a conference with her, he turned and said unwillingly to his
companion,

"Leave us, La Mole."

The Duke's favourite cast a glance of encouragement and caution upon
his master; and bowing to the Queen-mother, who returned his homage
with her kindest and most re-assuring smile of courtesy and
benevolence, and an affable wave of the hand, he left the apartment.

Catherine took the seat from which her son had risen; and leaving him
standing bef