bandoned as
she is by the king, watched as she is by the cardinal, betrayed as she
is by everybody."

"Ah, ah! It begins to develop itself," said d'Artagnan.

"Now, my wife came home four days ago, monsieur. One of her conditions
was that she should come and see me twice a week; for, as I had the
honor to tell you, my wife loves me dearly--my wife, then, came and
confided to me that the queen at that very moment entertained great
fears."

"Truly!"

"Yes. The cardinal, as it appears, pursues he and persecutes her more
than ever. He cannot pardon her the history of the Saraband. You know
the history of the Saraband?"

"PARDIEU! Know it!" replied d'Artagnan, who knew nothing about it, but
who wished to appear to know everything that was going on.

"So that now it is no longer hatred, but vengeance."

"Indeed!"

"And the queen believes--"

"Well, what does the queen believe?"

"She believes that someone has written to the Duke of Buckingham in her
name."

"In the queen's name?"

"Yes, to make him come to Paris; and when once come to Paris, to draw
him into some snare."

"The devil! But your wife, monsieur, what has she to do with all this?"

"Her devotion to the queen is known; and they wish either to remove
her from her mistress, or to intimidate her, in order to obtain her
Majesty's secrets, or to seduce her and make use of her as a spy."

"That is likely," said d'Artagnan; "but the man who has abducted her--do
you know him?"

"I have told you that I believe I know him."

"His name?"

"I do not know that; what I do know is that he is a creature of the
cardinal, his evil genius."

"But you have seen him?"

"Yes, my wife pointed him out to me one day."

"Has he anything remarkable about him by which one may recognize him?"

"Oh, certainly; he is a noble of very lofty carriage, black hair,
swarthy complexion, piercing eye, white teeth, and has a scar on his
temple."

"A scar on his temple!" cried d'Artagnan; "and with that, white teeth,
a piercing eye, dark complexion, black hair, and haughty carriage--why,
that's my man of Meung."

"He is your man, do you say?"

"Yes, yes; but that has nothing to do with it. No, I am wrong. On the
contrary, that simplifies the matter greatly. If your man is mine, with
one blow I shall obtain two revenges, that's all; but where to find this
man?"

"I know not."

"Have you no information as to his abiding place?"

"None. One day, as I was conveying my