"Alexandre Dumas. The Three Musketeers." - читать интересную книгу автора

boy for me? In con-science, I cannot kill him; and yet," added he, with a
coldly menacing expression, "he an-noys me. Where is he?"
"In my wife's chamber, on the first flight, where they are dressing
his wounds."
"His things and his bag are with him? Has he taken off his doublet?"
"On the contrary, everything is in the kitchen. But if he annoys you,
this young fool--"
"To be sure he does. He causes a disturbance in your hostelry, which
respectable people cannot put up with. Go; make out my bill and notify my
servant."
"What, monsieur, will you leave us so soon?"
"You know that very well, as I gave my order to saddle my horse. Have
they not obeyed me?"
"It is done; as your Excellency may have observed, your horse is in
the great gateway, ready saddled for your departure."
"That is well; do as I have directed you, then."
"What the devil!" said the host to himself. "Can he be afraid of this
boy?" But an imperi-ous glance from the stranger stopped him short; he
bowed humbly and retired.
"It is not necessary for Milady* to be seen by this fellow," continued
the stranger. "She will soon pass; she is already late. I had better get on
horseback, and go and meet her. I should like, however, to know what this
letter addressed to Treville contains."
*We are well aware that this term, milady, is only properly used when
followed by a family name. But we find it thus in the manuscript, and we do
not choose to take upon our-selves to alter it.
And the stranger, muttering to himself, directed his steps toward the
kitchen."
In the meantime, the host, who entertained no doubt that it was the
presence of the young man that drove the stranger from his hostelry,
re-ascended to his wife's chamber, and found D'Artagnan just recovering his
senses. Giving him to understand that the police would deal with him pretty
severely for having sought a quarrel with a great lord--for the opinion of
the host the stranger could be nothing less than a great lord--he insisted
that notwithstanding his weakness D'Artagnan should get up and depart as
quickly as possible. D'Artagnan, half stupefied, without his doublet, and
with his head bound up in a linen cloth, arose then, and urged by the host,
began to descend the stairs; but on arriving at the kitchen, the first
thing he saw was his antagonist talking calmly at the step of a heavy
car-riage, drawn by two large Norman horses.
His interlocutor, whose head appeared through the carriage window, was
a woman of from twenty to two-and-twenty years. We have already observed
with what rapidity D'Artagnan seized the expression of a countenance. He
perceived then, at a glance, that this woman was young and beautiful; and
her style of beauty struck him more forcibly from its being totally
different from that of the southern countries in which D'Artagnan had
hith-erto resided. She was pale and fair, with long curls falling in
profusion over her shoulders, had large, blue, languishing eyes, rosy lips,
and hands of alabaster. She was talking with great animation with the
stranger.