"Beg pardon, mademoiselle, Hulot is afraid of nothing. But women, you
see, are not in his line; it ruffled him to have a general in a
mob-cap."
"And yet," continued Mademoiselle de Verneuil, "it was his duty to
obey his superiors. I like subordination, and I warn you that I shall
allow no one to disobey me."
"That would be difficult," replied Merle, gallantly.
"Let us consult," said Mademoiselle de Verneuil. "You can get fresh
troops here and accompany me to Mayenne, which I must reach this
evening. Shall we find other soldiers there, so that I might go on at
once, without stopping at Mayenne? The Chouans are quite ignorant of
our little expedition. If we travel at night, we can avoid meeting any
number of them, and so escape an attack. Do you think this feasible?"
"Yes, mademoiselle."
"What sort of road is it between Mayenne and Fougeres?"
"Rough; all up and down, a regular squirrel-wheel."
"Well, let us start at once. As we have nothing to fear near Alencon,
you can go before me; we'll join you soon."
"One would think she had seen ten years' service," thought Merle, as
he departed. "Hulot is mistaken; that young girl is not earning her
living out of a feather-bed. Ten thousand carriages! if I want to be
adjutant-major I mustn't be such a fool as to mistake Saint-Michael
for the devil."
During Mademoiselle de Verneuil's conference with the captain,
Francine had slipped out for the purpose of examining, through a
window of the corridor, the spot in the courtyard which had excited
her curiosity on arriving at the inn.
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