astonishment arose from the
crowd.

"He has killed himself!" cried some.

"He has been poisoned!" said others.

Irene hastened to find Gudel. She had seen him near the door, but he had
vanished. The crowd departed, saying to each other, sadly:

"He is dead!"

Robeccal was carried off more dead than alive. His sentence had
frightened him. Perhaps he had not unbounded confidence in the honest
people who had employed him.

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

THE CRISIS.

"At last!" cried the Marquis, when the news of Fanfar's death reached
him. He sent for Magdalena.

"Madame!" he said, "rejoice with me. Let us forget our mutual wrongs,
for a new horizon stretches before us. All our anxieties are over. The
man who stood between us and the possession of a fortune is dead!"

"Of whom do you speak?"

"Of this Fanfar, who, after making an attempt on the life of our king,
was struck dead in the court-room during his trial."

"And this Fanfar was the son of Simon de Fongereues?"

"Yes, Madame, of my brother. And our father, who hated us, as you know,
left the larger part of his fortune in the care of a fanatical
body-servant of his, who held it as in trust for Simon's son whenever he
should find him. He refused to relinquish this trust until he had proof
of the death of the youth. Now he must be made to speak, for the only
heir of the Fongereues fortune is myself, and I shall appeal to the
law."

The Marquise talked with her husband for a long time. The next thing to
do was to make Gudel speak frankly. This he had no hesitation in doing,
and he again told the story he had told to the Marquis.

As to Pierre Labarre, of course he could make no further resistance. So
long as the Marquis knew that Fanfar was living he had been obliged to
be cautious; now no such reason existed.

The dreams of the Marquis were realized--a million for the Jesuits, and
the gratification of his ambition and pride.

"Our son will be rich and happy!" said Magdalena, in an ecstasy of joy.
"But where is the boy? Write, Marquis, write to him at once. He must be
suffering intolerably in this exile you have imposed upon him."

But Fongereues did not heed her words. He was thinking of other things.

"Cyprien has served me well!" he said. "How is it that I have not seen
him for two days?"

"I was speaking of our son!" answered Magdalena, angrily. "Do you not
think of your son? Do you not love your son?"

The Marquis took her hand. "It is time t