d. Corentin, the police agent, will take care
of him for us, and we ourselves will keep an eye on him. So treat him
decently; do not send him down to the cells again.

"Can we be the death of the Comte and Comtesse de Serizy, as well as of
Lucien, for the theft of seven hundred and fifty thousand francs as yet
unproven, and to Lucien's personal loss? Will it not be better for him
to lose the money than to lose his character? Above all, if he is to
drag with him in his fall a Minister of State, and his wife, and the
Duchesse du Maufrigneuse.

"This young man is a speckled orange; do not leave it to rot.

"All this will take you about half an hour; go and get it done; we will
wait for you. It is half-past three; you will find some judges about.
Let me know if you can get a rule of insufficient evidence--or Lucien
must wait till to-morrow morning."

Camusot bowed to the company and went; but Madame de Serizy, who was
suffering a good deal from her burns, did not return his bow.

Monsieur de Serizy, who had suddenly rushed away while the public
prosecutor and the magistrate were talking together, presently returned,
having fetched a small jar of virgin wax. With this he dressed his
wife's fingers, saying in an undertone:

"Leontine, why did you come here without letting me know?"

"My dear," replied she in a whisper, "forgive me. I seem mad, but indeed
your interests were as much involved as mine."

"Love this young fellow if fatality requires it, but do not display your
passion to all the world," said the luckless husband.

"Well, my dear Countess," said Monsieur de Granville, who had been
engaged in conversation with Comte Octave, "I hope you may take Monsieur
de Rubempre home to dine with you this evening."

This half promise produced a reaction; Madame de Serizy melted into
tears.

"I thought I had no tears left," said she with a smile. "But could you
not bring Monsieur de Rubempre to wait here?"

"I will try if I can find the ushers to fetch him, so that he may not be
seen under the escort of the gendarmes," said Monsieur de Granville.

"You are as good as God!" cried she, with a gush of feeling that made
her voice sound like heavenly music.

"These are the women," said Comte Octave, "who are fascinating,
irresistible!"

And he became melancholy as he thought of his own wife. (See
_Honorine_.)

As he left the room, Monsieur de Granville was stopped by young
Chargeboeuf, to whom he spoke to give him