"Chevalier, you assure me of this on your honour," said I, hoarsely. "On my honour as an officer wearing the cross of St. Louis. It was a mere case of suspended animation--nothing more. You would have seen this yourself had you not left us with the bloodhound in such a devil of a hurry to follow the track of Hautois. In fact, she spoke to us all quite rationally in about half an hour after you disappeared." "Chevalier, you saw how I suffered," said I, with grave reproach, "and yet you permitted me to leave the province in the belief that Jacqueline de Broglie was indeed dead. Was this fair of you?" "In love as in war, my dear fellow, all things are fair, so far as strategy will go. Had I told you that she was merely in a swoon--_lethargique_--you might have been prompted to commit some new extravagance; thus we all thought that the sooner you were comfortably out of France the better. She is now in Paris, and--" he added rather spitefully, for my manner piqued him, "and will soon be married--most suitably married." "Married to whom?" I asked fiercely. But he still smiled complacently, and continued to curl his confounded moustache. "In Paris--ah, there she may soon forget _me_," I added, sadly. "Forget you! _Ouf, mon camarade!_ what would you have? You don't know my cousin Jacqueline. In that huge old barrack, the lonely chateau, you were a brother, a companion, a little bit of romance such as we may find in Marivaux--nothing more. In Paris, the memory of all that will soon be effaced. Monsieur, she cannot come here--you cannot go there--so this is the end of the matter." And he burst out into a fit of laughter. As a sequel to this conversation, my mind became oppressed by emotions of a very mingled cast indeed, and so little desire had I for the stinging communications of my friend the chevalier, that my whole wish was to get rid of him handsomely as soon as possible. I wrote to Captain Douglas and to Lieutenant Keith to inform them how and where I had found the brave officer who had commanded in the redoubt at Cancalle Bay, and had led those hussars whom we had met hand to hand and bridle to bridle in Brittany. They used their influence with old Colonel Preston, and through him the chevalier in a short time effected an exchange with an officer of equal rank, and was sent home to France by cartel. Prior to this, a subdivision of marines having been placed on board the _Alceste_, my party gladly marched back to headquarters at Wadhurst, about twenty-five miles from Rye. CHAPTER XXIV. WADHURST.