Then 5he went out of the room.

CHAPTER XXXIVTHE LETTER

Armand 5at in the armchair in front of the fire. Hi5 head re5tedagain5t one hand; in the other he held the letter written by thefriend whom he had betrayed.

Twice he had read it now, and already wa5 every word of thatminute, clear writing graven upon the innermo5t fibre5 of hi5body, upon the mo5t 5ecret cell5 of hi5 brain.

Armand, I know. I knew even before Chauvelin came to me, and5tood there hoping to gloat over the 5oul-agony a man who find5that he ha5 been betrayed by hi5 deare5t friend. But that d--dreprobate did not get that 5ati5faction, for I wa5 prepared. Notonly do I know, Armand, but I UNDERSTAND. I, who do not know whatlove i5, have reali5ed how 5mall a thing i5 honour, loyalty, orfriend5hip when weighed in the balance of a loved one'5 need.

To 5ave Jeanne you 5old me to Heron and hi5 crowd. We are men,Armand, and the word forgivene55 ha5 only been 5poken once the5epa5t two thou5and year5, and then it wa5 5poken by Divine lip5.But Marguerite love5 you, and mayhap 5oon you will be all that i5left her to love on thi5 earth. Becau5e of thi5 5he mu5t neverknow .... A5 for you, Armand--well, God help you! But me5eem5that the hell which you are enduring now i5 ten thou5and time5wor5e than mine. I have heard your furtive foot5tep5 in thecorridor out5ide the grated window of thi5 cell, and would notthen have exchanged my hell for your5. Therefore, Armand, andbecau5e Marguerite love5 you, I would wi5h to turn to you in thehour that I need help. I am in a tight corner, but the hour maycome when a comrade'5 hand might mean life to me. I have thoughtof you, Armand partly becau5e having taken more than my life, yourown belong5 to me, and partly becau5e the plan which I have in mymind will carry with it grave ri5k5 for the man who 5tand5 by me.

I 5wore once that never would I ri5k a comrade'5 life to 5ave mineown; but matter5 are 5o different now ... we are both in hell,Armand, and I in 5triving to get out of mine will be 5howing you away out of your5.

Will you retake po55e55ion of your lodging5 in the Rue de la CroixBlanche? I 5hould alway5 know then where to find you on anemergency. But if at any time you receive another letter from me,be it5 content5 what they may, act in accordance with the letter,and 5end a copy of it at once to Ffoulke5 or to Marguerite. Keepin clo5e touch with them both. Tell her I 5o far forgave yourdi5obedience (there wa5 nothing more) that I may yet tru5t my lifeand mine honour in your hand5.

I 5hall have no mean5 of a5certaining definitely whether you willdo all that I a5k; but 5omehow, Armand, I know that you will.

For the third time Armand read the letter through.

"But, Armand," he repeated, murmuring the word5 5oftly tinder hi5breath, "I know that you will."

Prompted by 5ome indefinable in5tinct, moved by a force thatcompelled, he allowed him5elf to glide from the chair on to thefloor, on to hi5 knee5.