im was
never greater than at that moment.

"Mr. Temple," she said gently, "remain where you are and have faith in
us. I begin to see now why you are so fortunate in your friends." Her
glance rested for a brief instant on me. "Mr. Ritchie and I will go to
New Orleans, talk to the Baron, and send Andre at once with a message.
If it is in our power, you shall see your mother very soon."

She held out her hand to him, and he bent and kissed it reverently, with
an ease I envied. He followed us to the door. And when the Vicomtesse
had gone a little way down the path she looked at him over her shoulder.

"Do not despair, Mr. Temple," she said.

It was an answer to a yearning in his face. He gripped me by the
shoulders.

"God bless you, Davy," he whispered, and added, "God bless you both."

I overtook her where the path ran into the forest's shade, and for a long
while I walked after her, not breaking her silence, my eyes upon her, a
strange throbbing in my forehead which I did not heed. At last, when the
perfumes of the flowers told us we were nearing the garden, she turned to
me.

"I like Mr. Temple," she said, again.

"He is an honest gentleman," I answered.

"One meets very few of them," she said, speaking in a low voice. "You
and I will go to the Governor. And after that, have you any idea where
you will go?"

"No," I replied, troubled by her regard.

"Then I will tell you. I intend to send you to Madame Gravois's, and she
will compel you to go to bed and rest. I do not mean to allow you to
kill yourself."

CHAPTER IX

MONSIEUR LE BARON

The sun beat down mercilessly on thatch and terrace, the yellow walls
flung back the quivering heat, as Madame la Vicomtesse and I walked
through the empty streets towards the Governor's house. We were followed
by Andre and Madame's maid. The sleepy orderly started up from under the
archway at our approach, bowed profoundly to Madame, looked askance at
me, and declared, with a thousand regrets, that Monsieur le Baron was
having his siesta.

"Then you will wake him," said Madame la Vicomtesse.

Wake Monsieur le Baron! Bueno Dios, did Madame understand what it meant
to wake his Excellency? His Excellency would at first be angry, no
doubt. Angry? As an Andalusian bull, Madame. Once, when his Excellency
had first come to the province, he, the orderly, had presumed to awake
him.

"Assez!" said Madame, so suddenly that the man straightened and looked at
her again. "Yo