'My dear Louis,' said he. 'It was really the hope of meeting you here which brought me over from Grosbois--although you can understand that living so far from Paris I cannot afford to miss such an opportunity of showing myself at Court. Nevertheless I can assure you that it was of you principally that I was thinking. I hear that you have had a splendid reception from the Emperor, and that you have been taken into his personal service. I had spoken to him about you, and I made him fully realise that if he treats you well he is likely to coax some of the other young emigres into his service.' I was convinced that he was lying, but none the less I had to bow and utter a few words of cold thanks. 'I see that you still bear me some grudge for what passed between us the other day,' said he, 'but really, my dear Louis, you have no occasion to do so. It was your own good which I had chiefly at heart. I am neither a young nor a strong man, Louis, and my profession, as you have seen, is a dangerous one. There is my child, and there is my estate. Who takes one, takes both. Sibylle is a charming girl, and you must not allow yourself to be prejudiced against her by any ill temper which she may have shown towards me. I will confess that she had some reason to be annoyed at the turn which things had taken. But I hope to hear that you have now thought better upon this matter.' 'I have never thought about it at all, and I beg that you will not discuss it,' said I curtly. He stood in deep thought for a few moments, and then he raised his evil face and his cruel grey eyes to mine. 'Well, well, that is settled then,' said he. 'But you cannot bear me a grudge for having wished you to be my successor. Be reasonable, Louis. You must acknowledge that you would now be six feet deep in the salt-marsh with your neck broken if I had not stood your friend, at some risk to myself. Is that not true?' 'You had your own motive for that,' said I. 'Very likely. But none the less I saved you. Why should you bear me ill will? It is no fault of mine if I hold your estate.' 'It is not on account of that.' 'Why is it then?' I could have explained that it was because he had betrayed his comrades, because his daughter hated him, because he had ill-used his wife, because my father regarded him as the source of all his troubles--but the salon of the Empress was no place for a family quarrel, so I merely shrugged my shoulders, and was silent. 'Well, I am very sorry,' said he, 'for I had the best of intentions towards you. I could have advanced you, for there are few men in France who exercise more influence. But I have one request to make to you.' 'What is that, sir?'