"
"Hum!" said the sergeant. "When I entered, Blaireau was wildly excited.
He kept coming to you, sniffing, whining in his way, running to the
bed, scratching the wall, coming to me, running to you. Strange, that!
Astonishing, captain, astonishing, that!"
After a silence of a few moments:
"Devil don't return!" he exclaimed, shaking his head. "Dead never
return; besides, why dead, John? Not dead! Still two Mauprats! Who
knows? Where the devil? Dead don't return; and my master--mad? Never.
Ill? No."
After this colloquy the sergeant went and fetched a light, drew his
faithful sword from the scabbard, whistled Blaireau, and bravely seized
the rope which served as a balustrade for the staircase, requesting me
to remain below. Great as was my repugnance to entering the room again,
I did not hesitate to follow Marcasse, in spite of his recommendation.
Our first care was to examine the bed; but while we had been talking in
the courtyard the servant had brought clean sheets, had made the bed,
and was now smoothing the blankets.
"Who has been sleeping there?" asked Marcasse, with his usual caution.
"Nobody," she replied, "except M. le Chevalier or M. l'Abbe Aubert, in
the days when they used to come."
"But yesterday, or to-day, I mean?" said Marcasse.
"Oh! yesterday and to-day, nobody, sir; for it is quite two years since
M. le Chevalier came here; and as for M. l'Abbe, he never sleeps here,
now that he comes alone.
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