he recognized Dionysia, and went towards her.

"Pardon me, sir," she said, "for having dared to send for you."

Mechinet's anxiety vanished instantly. He thought no longer of his
strange position. His vanity was flattered by the confidence which this
young lady put in him, whom he knew very well as the noblest, the most
beautiful, and the richest heiress in the whole country.

"You were quite right to send for me, madam," he replied, "if I can be
of any service to you."

In a few words she had told him all; and, when she asked his advice, he
replied,--

"I am entirely of M. Folgat's opinion, and think that grief and
isolation begin to have their effect upon M. de Boiscoran's mind."

"Oh, that thought is maddening!" murmured the poor girl.

"I think, as M. Magloire does, that M. de Boiscoran, by his silence,
only makes his situation much worse. I have a proof of that. M. Galpin,
who, at first, was all doubt and anxiety, is now quite reassured. The
attorney-general has written him a letter, in which he compliments his
energy."

"And then."

"Then we must induce M. de Boiscoran to speak. I know very well that he
is firmly resolved not to speak; but if you were to write to him, since
you can write to him"--

"A letter would be useless."

"But"--

"Useless, I tell you. But I know a means."

"You must use it promptly, madam: don't lose a moment. There is no
time."

The night was clear, but not clear enough for the clerk to see how very
pale Dionysia was.

"Well, then, I must see M. de Boiscoran: I must speak to him."

She expected the clerk to start, to cry out, to protest. Far from it: he
said in the quietest tone,--

"To be sure; but how?"

"Blangin the keeper, and his wife, keep their places only because
they give them a support. Why might I not offer them, in return for
an interview with M. de Boiscoran, the means to go and live in the
country?"

"Why not?" said the clerk.

And in a lower voice, replying to the voice of his conscience, he went
on,--

"The jail in Sauveterre is not at all like the police-stations and
prisons of larger towns. The prisoners are few in number; they are
hardly guarded. When the doors are shut, Blangin is master within."

"I will go and see him to-morrow," declared Dionysia.

There are certain slopes on which you must glide down. Having once
yielded to Dionysia's suggestions, Mechinet had, unconsciously, bound
himself to her forever.

"No: do not go there, mad