"And quite right, too! For it was necessary to put a stop to his
nonsense. I will attend to it."
"But what if my mother wants to separate us?"
"Your mother, indeed!" I exclaimed; "your mother who sold you, abandoned
you to the life of a slave, do you think she can come and claim the
rights which she has thrown away?"
"Can you defend me against her, then?"
"Yes, dear, I will defend you," I exclaimed in a passion, "and now set
your mind at ease. There is a miserable plot at the bottom of all this,
which I intend demolishing. When I leave you I am going to Count Kiusko,
and I assure you that he sha'n't trouble you any more: after that I
shall see your mother."
"Good heavens!" said Kondjé-Gul, "are you going to fight him?"
"No, no," I answered with a laugh, in order to remove her fears; "but
you must understand that it is necessary for me to have an explanation
with him."
In the morning I returned home and arranged all my affairs ready for any
eventuality; then when all was in order I went after two of my friends,
and asked them to hold themselves ready to act as my seconds in an
affair which I might be compelled by grave circumstances to settle that
very day. Having obtained their promise to do so, I proceeded to
Kiusko's in the Rue de l'Elysée.
When I arrived at his house, I saw from the windows being open that he
was up. A footman, who knew me, was standing under the peristyle. He
told me that he did not think his master would see anyone then. I gave
him my card and instructed him to send it up at once to the count. In a
minute or two after he returned and asked me to come up to his master's
private room: he showed me into a little smoking-room adjoining the
bedroom, to which the count's intimate friends only are admitted. I had
hardly entered it when Daniel appeared; he was dressed in a Moldavian
costume which he uses as a dressing-gown.
"Hullo, here's our dear friend André!" he said when he saw me, in such
an indifferent tone that I could detect in it the intentional
affectation of a calmness to which his pale countenance gave the lie.
Still he did not hold out his hand to me, nor did I proffer mine; he sat
down, indicating to me an arm-chair on the other side of the fire-place.