stablished as her lover, supplanting Lahaie, who was sent on an
embassy to Denmark.

The duchess had the singular moderation of never having had more than
two lovers; Lahaie, whom she had never avowed, and Riom, whom she
proclaimed aloud.

This was not the true cause of the malice with which the princess was
pursued; it arose rather from the previous offenses of her passage
through Paris, the reception of the ambassadors, her bodyguard, and her
assumptions. The duke himself was indignant at Riom's influence over his
daughter. Riom had been brought up by the Duc de Lauzun, who in the
morning had crushed the hand of the Princesse de Monaco with the heel of
the boot which, in the evening, he made the daughter of Gaston
d'Orleans pull off, and who had given his nephew the following
instruction, which Riom had fully carried out.

"The daughters of France," said he, "must be treated with a high hand;"
and Riom, trusting to his uncle's experience, had so well schooled the
Duchesse de Berry that she scarcely dared to give a fete without his
permission.

The duke took as strong a dislike to Riom as his careless character
allowed him to take to any one, and, under pretext of serving the
duchess, had given him a regiment, then the government of Cognac, then
the order to retire to his government, which almost made his favors look
like disfavors and disgrace.

The duchess was not deceived; she went to her father, begged, prayed,
and scolded, but in vain; and she went away threatening the duke with
her anger, and declaring that Riom should not go.

The duke's only reply was to repeat his orders for Riom's departure the
next day, and Riom had respectfully promised to obey.

The same day, which was the one preceding that on which our story opens,
Riom had ostensibly set out, and Dubois himself had told the duke that
he had left for Cognac at nine o'clock.

Meanwhile the duke had not again seen his daughter; thus, when he spoke
of going to finish with her, it was rather a pardon than a quarrel that
he went to seek. Dubois had not been duped by this pretended resolution;
but Riom was gone, and that was all he wanted; he hoped to slip in some
new personage who should efface all memory of Riom, who was to be sent
to join the Marechal de Berwick in Spain.

The carriage stopped before the Luxembourg, which was lighted as usual.

The duke ascended the steps with his usual celerity, Dubois remained in
a corner of the carriage. Pres