knows it was the little property I received from my uncle in England
that I placed in his hands."

"Yes, yes," said la Peyrade, "but you must understand that with all
these rumors set about by your master's relatives the prize of virtue is
desperately endangered."

"If it is God's will that I am not to have it--"

"You ought also to understand how important it is for your interests
to keep secret the other service which I did for you. At the first
appearance of any indiscretion on your part that money, as I told you,
will be peremptorily returned to you."

"Oh! monsieur may be easy about that."

"Very well; then good-bye to you, my dear," said la Peyrade, in a
friendly tone.

As he turned to leave her, a nasal voice was heard from a window on the
staircase.

"Madame Lambert!" cried Cerizet, who, suspecting the colloquy, had gone
to the staircase window to make sure of it. "Madame Lambert! Monsieur
Dutocq has returned; you may come up and see him, if you like."

Impossible for la Peyrade to prevent the conference, although he knew
the secret of that twenty-five thousand francs ran the greatest danger.

"Certainly," he said to himself as he walked away, "I'm in a run of
ill-luck; and I don't know where it will end."

In Brigitte's nature there was such an all-devouring instinct of
domination, that it was without regret, and, we may even say, with a
sort of secret joy that she saw the disappearance of Madame de Godollo.
That woman, she felt, had a crushing superiority over her; and this,
while it had given a higher order to the Thuillier establishment, made
her ill at ease. When therefore the separation took place, which was
done, let us here say, on good terms, and under fair and honorable
pretexts, Mademoiselle Thuillier breathed more freely. She felt like
those kings long swayed by imperious and necessary ministers, who
celebrate within their hearts the day when death delivers them from a
master whose services and rival influence they impatiently endured.

Thuillier was not far from having the same sentiment about la Peyrade.
But Madame de Godollo was only the elegance, whereas la Peyrade was the
utility of the house they had now simultaneously abandoned; and after
the lapse of a few days, a terrible need of Theodose made itself felt
in the literary and political existence of his dear, good friend.
The municipal councillor found himself suddenly appointed to draft an
important report. He was unable to decli