"We are poor King's sons--we are here in prison. But grandmother, where is she? And where is our brother Childebert? Where can they be? Perhaps they also are prisoners." "And whose fault is it? It is the fault of the army that betrayed us!" cried little Corbe angrily. "I heard everybody say so around us--the troops fled without striking a blow. I heard them say that Duke Warnachaire prepared the treason! Oh, the scoundrel!" "Not so loud, Corbe, not so loud!" cautioned Sigebert with a smothered voice. "You will wake up Merovee--poor little fellow! I wish I could sleep like him. I would not then be thinking." "You are always weeping, Sigebert; tell me why?" "Are we not now in the hands of our grandmother's enemies?" "Be not afraid; she will soon come with another army and set us free; she will kill Clotaire. Are you not hungry?" "No! Oh, no! I am neither hungry nor thirsty." "The sun has long been up; they will surely soon bring us something to eat. Grandmother was right; war is tiresome and uncomfortable, but only when one is not a prisoner. But how Merovee does sleep! Wake him up!" "Oh, brother, let him sleep quietly; perhaps he also thinks, as you did, that he is in our palace at Chalon." "So much the worse! We woke up--I do not want him to sleep any longer--why should he?" "Corbe, you can not have a good heart." "Sigebert! They are opening the door--they are bringing us something to eat." Indeed, the door opened. Four personages stepped into the house. Two of them were clad in jackets of hides, and one of these carried a roll of rope. Clotaire II and Warnachaire accompanied the two men. The duke had his battle armor on, the King a long light blue silk robe bordered with ermine. "Seigneur King," said Duke Warnachaire in a low voice, "will you not wait for the return of Constable Herpon?" "Who can tell whether he will be back to-day?" "You must remember that his horses are fresh; Brunhild's are exhausted with the march. It is impossible that he should have failed to overtake the Queen at the foot of the Jura mountains, into which she will not dare to risk herself. The constable may be back with her from one moment to another." "Warnachaire, I am in a hurry to be done with it; such a blow will be of little moment to Brunhild; why delay it to wait for her to witness? It should be done quickly."