He led her to her chamber.
"Be calm," he said, "and try to sleep. Tomorrow, when it is light, we
will see what can be done."
As he withdrew he prudently locked her in. It was his opinion that women
were good for nothing and that they spoiled everything when they took
a hand in a serious affair. But Francoise did not retire. She sat for
a long while upon the side of her bed, listening to the noises of the
house. The German soldiers encamped in the courtyard sang and laughed;
they must have been eating and drinking until eleven o'clock, for the
racket did not cease an instant. In the mill itself heavy footsteps
resounded from time to time, without doubt those of the sentinels who
were being relieved. But she was interested most by the sounds she
could distinguish in the apartment beneath her chamber. Many times she
stretched herself out at full length and put her ear to the floor. That
apartment was the one in which Dominique was confined. He must have been
walking back and forth from the window to the wall, for she long heard
the regular cadence of his steps. Then deep silence ensued; he had
doubtless seated himself. Finally every noise ceased and all was as if
asleep. When slumber appeared to her to have settled on the house she
opened her window as gently as possible and leaned her elbows on the
sill.
Pages:
777
778
779
780
781
782
783
784
785
786
787
788
789
790
791
792
793
794
795
796
797
798
799
800
801