Monsieur de Cleves was in no doubt concerning the occasion of his
journey; and he resolved to inform himself as to his wife's conduct,
and to continue no longer in so cruel an uncertainty; he had a desire
to set out the same time as the Duke de Nemours did, and to hide
himself where he might discover the success of the journey; but fearing
his departure might appear extraordinary, and lest the Duke, being
advertised of it, might take other measures, he resolved to trust this
business to a gentleman of his, whose fidelity and wit he was assured
of; he related to him the embarrassment he was under, and what the
virtue of his wife had been till that time, and ordered him to follow
the Duke de Nemours, to watch him narrowly, to see if he did not go to
Colomiers, and if he did not enter the garden in the night.
The gentleman, who was very capable of this commission, acquitted
himself of it with all the exactness imaginable. He followed the Duke
to a village within half a league of Colomiers, where the Duke stopped
and the gentleman easily guessed his meaning was to stay there till
night. He did not think it convenient to wait there, but passed on,
and placed himself in that part of the forest where he thought the Duke
would pass: he took his measures very right; for it was no sooner night
but he heard somebody coming that way, and though it was dark, he
easily knew the Duke de Nemours; he saw him walk round the garden, as
with a design to listen if he could hear anybody, and to choose the
most convenient place to enter: the palisades were very high and
double, in order to prevent people from coming in, so that it was very
difficult for the Duke to get over, however he made a shift to do it.
He was no sooner in the garden but he discovered where Madam de Cleves
was; he saw a great light in the bower, all the windows of it were
open; upon this, slipping along by the side of the palisades, he came
up close to it, and one may easily judge what were the emotions of his
heart at that instant: he took his station behind one of the windows,
which served him conveniently to see what Madam de Cleves was doing.
He saw she was alone; he saw her so inimitably beautiful, that he could
scarce govern the transports which that sight gave him: the weather was
hot, her head and neck were uncovered, and her hair hung carelessly
about her.