oar would drown every
noise she might make, and she descended more courageously, feeling the
ivy with her foot, assuring herself that the rounds were firm. When she
was at the height of the chamber which served as Dominique's prison
she paused. An unforeseen difficulty nearly caused her to lose all her
courage: the window of the chamber was not directly below that of her
apartment. She hung off from the ladder, but when she stretched out her
arm her hand encountered only the wall. Must she, then, ascend without
pushing her plan to completion? Her arms were fatigued; the murmur of
the Morelle beneath her commenced to make her dizzy. Then she tore from
the wall little fragments of plaster and threw them against Dominique's
window. He did not hear; he was doubtless asleep. She crumbled more
plaster from the wall, scraping the skin off her fingers. She was
utterly exhausted; she felt herself falling backward, when Dominique at
last softly opened the window.

"It is I!" she murmured. "Catch me quickly; I'm falling!"

It was the first time that she had addressed him familiarly. Leaning
out, he seized her and drew her into the chamber. There she gave vent to
a flood of tears, stifling her sobs that she might not be heard. Then by
a supreme effort she calmed herself.

"Are you guarded?" she asked in a low voice.

Dominique, still stupefied at seeing her thus, nodded his head
affirmatively, pointing to the door. On the other side they heard
someone snoring; the sentinel, yielding to sleep, had thrown himself on
the floor against the door, arguing that by disposing himself thus the
prisoner could not escape.

"You must fly," resumed Francoise excitedly. "I have come to beg you to
do so and to bid you farewell."

But he did not seem to hear her. He repeated:

"What? Is it you; is it you? Oh, what fear you caused me! You might have
killed yourself!"

He seized her hands; he kissed them.

"How I love you, Francoise!" he murmured. "You are as courageous as
good. I had only one dread: that I should die without seeing you again.
But you are here, and now they can shoot me. When I have passed a
quarter of an hour with you I shall be ready."

Little by little he had drawn her to him, and she leaned her head upon
his shoulder. The danger made them dearer to each other. They forgot
everything in that warm clasp.

"Ah, Francoise," resumed Dominique in a caressing voice, "this is Saint
Louis's Day, the day, so long awaited, of