And as it seemed to her
that she had nothing more to add, she approached the magistrate,
and, with impressive solemnity of tone and manner, exclaimed: "My
life up to the present hour is now as well known to you as it is
to myself. You know what even the friend, who is my only hope,
does not know as yet. And now, when I tell him what I really am,
will he think me unworthy of him?"
The magistrate sprang to his feet, impelled by an irresistible
force. Two big tears, the first he had shed for years, trembled
on his eyelashes, and coursed down his furrowed cheeks. "You are
a noble creature, my child," he replied, in a voice faltering with
emotion; "and if I had a son, I should deem myself fortunate if he
chose a wife like you."
She clasped her hands, with a gesture of intense joy and relief,
and then sank into an arm-chair, murmuring: "Oh, thanks, monsieur,
thanks!" For she was thinking of Pascal; and she had feared he
might shrink from her when she fully revealed to him her wretched,
sorrowful past, of which he was entirely ignorant. But the
magistrate's words had reassured her.
XI.
The clock on the mantel-shelf struck half-past four. The
magistrate and Mademoiselle Marguerite could hear stealthy
footsteps in the hall, and a rustling near the door. The servants
were prowling round about the study, wondering what was the reason
of this prolonged conference. "I must see how the clerk is
progressing with the inventory.
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