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The Three Musketeers
Twenty Years Later
The Vicomte De Bragelonne
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Twenty Years Later 58 at Prostate Health
hour Athos joined them and at the same
moment Charles brought in a letter for DArtagnan, which a
messenger had just desired might be instantly delivered.
It was now Athoss turn to take a sly look.
DArtagnan read the letter with apparent calmness and said,
shaking his head:
"See, dear friend, what it is to belong to the army. Faith,
you are indeed right not to return to it. Monsieur de
Treville is ill, so my company cant do without me; there!
my leave is at an end!"
"Do you return to Paris?" asked Athos, quickly.
"Egad! yes; but why dont you come there also?"
Athos colored a little and answered:
"Should I go, I shall be delighted to see you there."
"Halloo, Planchet!" cried the Gascon from the door, "we must
set out in ten minutes; give the horses some hay."
Then turning to Athos he added:
"I seem to miss something here. I am really sorry to go away
without having seen Grimaud."
"Grimaud!" replied Athos. "Im surprised you have never so
much as asked after him. I have lent him to a friend ---- "
"Who will understand the signs he makes?" returned
DArtagnan.
"I hope so."
The friends embraced cordially; DArtagnan pressed Raouls
hand.
"Will you not come with me?" he said; "I shall pass by
Blois."
Raoul turned toward Athos, who showed him by a secret sign
that he did not wish him to go.
"No, monsieur," replied the young man; "I will remain with
monsieur le comte."
"Adieu, then, to both, my good friends," said DArtagnan;
"may God preserve you! as we used to say when we said
good-bye to each other in the late cardinals time."
Athos waved his hand, Raoul bowed, and DArtagnan and
Planchet set out.
The count followed them with his eyes, his hands resting on
the shoulders of the youth, whose height was almost equal to
his own; but as soon as they were out of sight he said:
"Raoul, we set out to-night for Paris."
"Eh?" cried the young man, turning pale.
"You may go and offer your adieux and mine to Madame de
Saint-Remy. I shall wait for you here till seven."
The young man bent low, with an expression of sorrow and
gratitude mingled, and retired in order to saddle his horse.
As to DArtagnan, scarcely, on his side, was he out of sight
when he drew from his pocket a letter, which he read over
again:
"Return immediately to Paris. -- J. M ---- ."
"The epistle is laconic," said DArtagnan; "and if there had
not been a postscript, probably I should not have understood
it; but happily there is a postscript."
And he read that welcome postscript, which made him forget
the abruptness of the letter.
"P. S. -- Go to the kings treasurer, at Blois; tell him
your name and show him this letter; you will receive two
hundred pistoles."
"Assuredly," said DArtagnan, "I admire this piece of prose.
The cardinal writes better than I thought. Come, Planchet,
let us pay a visit to the kings treasurer and then set
off."
"Toward Paris, sir?"
"Toward Paris."
And they set out at as hard a canter as their horses could
maintain.
16
The Duc de Beaufort.
The circumstances that had hastened the return of DArtagnan
to Paris were as follows:
One evening, when Mazarin, according to custom, went to
visit the queen, in passing the guard-chamber he heard loud
voices; wishing to know on what topic the soldiers were
conversing, he approached with his wonted wolf-like step,
pushed open the door and put his head close to the chink.
There was a dispute among the guards.
"I tell you," one of them was saying, "that if Coysel
predicted that, tis as good as true; I know nothing about
it, but I have heard say that hes not only an astrologer,
but a magician."
"Deuce take it, friend, if hes one of thy friends thou wilt
ruin him in saying so."
"Why?"
"Because he may be tried for it."
"Ah! absurd! they dont burn sorcerers nowadays."
"No? Tis not a long time since the late cardinal burnt
Urban Grandier, though."
"My friend, Urban Grandier wasnt a sorcerer, he was a
learned man. He didnt predict the future, he knew the past
-- often a more dangerous thing."
Mazarin nodded an assent, but wishing to know what this
prediction was, about which they disputed, he remained in
the same place.
"I dont say," resumed the guard, "that Coysel is not a
sorcerer, but I say that if his prophecy gets wind, its a
sure way to prevent its coming true."
"How so?"
"Why, in this way: if Coysel says loud enough for the
cardinal to hear him, on such or such a day such
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