They reached the house. Castanier, absorbed by the thought of all that
he had just heard and seen, knew not whether to believe it or not; he
was like a drunken man, and utterly unable to think connectedly. He
came to himself in Aquilina's room, whither he had been supported by
the united efforts of his mistress, the porter, and Jenny; for he had
fainted as he stepped from the carriage.
"_He_ will be here directly! Oh, my friends, my friends," he cried, and
he flung himself despairingly into the depths of a low chair beside
the fire.
Jenny heard the bell as he spoke, and admitted the Englishman. She
announced that "a gentleman had come who had made an appointment with
the master," when Melmoth suddenly appeared, and deep silence
followed. He looked at the porter--the porter went; he looked at
Jenny--and Jenny went likewise.
"Madame," said Melmoth, turning to Aquilina, "with your permission, we
will conclude a piece of urgent business."
He took Castanier's hand, and Castanier rose, and the two men went
into the drawing-room. There was no light in the room, but Melmoth's
eyes lit up the thickest darkness. The gaze of those strange eyes had
left Aquilina like one spellbound; she was helpless, unable to take
any thought for her lover; moreover, she believed him to be safe in
Jenny's room, whereas their early return had taken the waiting-woman
by surprise, and she had hidden the officer in the dressing-room.
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