solitude, but that
instead of becoming _ennuyee_ by remaining behind alone as she wished,
she will be good enough to accompany us to Saint-Germain and get
_ennuyee_ there."

"Ah! poor La Valliere," said Montalais, compassionately, but with her
heart throbbing with delight; "oh, Madame, could there not be some
means--"

"Enough," said Madame; "I desire it. I prefer Mademoiselle la Baume le
Blanc's society to that of any one else. Go, and send her to me, and
take care of your foot."

Montalais did not wait for the order to be repeated; she returned to her
room, almost forgetting to feign lameness, wrote an answer to Malicorne,
and slipped it under the carpet. The answer simply said: "She shall." A
Spartan could not have written more laconically.

"By this means," thought Madame, "I will look narrowly after all on the
road; she shall sleep near me during the night, and his majesty must
be very clever if he can exchange a single word with Mademoiselle de la
Valliere."

La Valliere received the order to set off with the same indifferent
gentleness with which she had received the order to play Cinderella.
But, inwardly, her delight was extreme, and she looked upon this change
in the princess's resolution as a consolation which Providence had sent
her. With less penetration than Madame possessed, she attributed all
to chance. While every one, with the exception of those in disgrace,
of those who were ill, and those who were suffering from sprains, were
being driven towards Saint-Germain, Malicorne smuggled his workman into
the palace in one of M. de Saint-Aignan's carriages, and led him into
the room corresponding to La Valliere's. The man set to work with a
will, tempted by the splendid reward which had been promised him. As the
very best tools and implements had been selected from the reserve stock
belonging to the engineers attached to the king's household--and among
others, a saw with teeth so sharp and well tempered that it was able,
under water even, to cut through oaken joists as hard as iron--the work
in question advanced very rapidly, and a square portion of the ceiling,
taken from between two of the joists, fell into the arms of the
delighted Saint-Aignan, Malicorne, the workman, and a confidential
valet, the latter being one brought into the world to see and hear
everything, but to repeat nothing. In accordance with a new plan
indicated by Malicorne, the opening was effected in an angle of the
room--and for