My Neighbor Raymond Part 28

"Caroline, does your aunt need you to support her?"

"No, monsieur; on the contrary, I am sure that she wouldn't be at all sorry to have me provided for."

"I understand. And you have no other relations?"

"No, monsieur."

"And you two would part without regret?"

"Oh, yes, indeed! for we often quarrel; and if I had been able to have a room of my own, I'd have done it long ago."

"In that case, you shall be in your own quarters to-morrow."

"What, monsieur! do you mean it?"

She jumped for joy, then checked herself, because she thought that she ought not to let me see how delighted she was, but that it was inc.u.mbent on her to make some show of hesitation.

"But, monsieur, I don't know whether I ought to accept."

"What is there to prevent?"

"What will people say?"

"It seems to me that that ought not to worry you so much as your aunt; and as you are not afraid of making her angry, what do you care for what strangers may say?"

"That's so, monsieur; it makes no difference at all to me; besides, several friends of mine have done it, and been no worse off for it."

"Oh! there's no lack of examples. And so, my dear girl, be all ready at this time to-morrow night. I will come here for you. Make up a little bundle of whatever you need most, and I will take you to your room."

"Well, as you insist upon it, until to-morrow! I'll be ready."

"By the way, one more question. Who is that Monsieur Jules you were with at Tivoli?"

"Oh! he's a very well-behaved young fellow, who takes me out to walk sometimes with my aunt."

"I believe you; but even if he's a hundred times more well-behaved than you say, you must promise me not to receive him at your room, and not to go to walk with him any more."

"Never fear; I know that I mustn't do that, and I don't mean to annoy you in any way."

"You are a dear girl; so it's decided, is it?"

"Yes; until to-morrow; it's late and I must go."

I took an earnest of our bargain from Caroline's lips; and she hurried away, doubtless to prepare for the coming change in her situation.

So I had arranged to keep Mademoiselle Caroline! The word had an ill sound in my ears; in general, it is understood to refer to those old libertines, ugly, stupid, and infirm, whom fortune alone has favored, and who obtain by the power of gold favors which others often have obtained without effort. Those men are rarely loved, and are almost always deceived; I myself had taken enjoyment at their expense; and I was going to keep Caroline! No, I was going to establish her in lodgings, that was all; I might perhaps make her a little present now and then, but she must continue to work; I had no inclination to gratify all her whims; therefore, I was her lover, not her keeper.

We always endeavor to look at our own actions in the most favorable light; moreover, Caroline was really pretty; I had been sighing for her many days, and at last my hopes were to be fulfilled. I persuaded myself that she loved me, although I had detected nothing in her conduct to demonstrate it; but it is so pleasant to flatter one's self that one has aroused that sentiment! She was a flirt, but I would steady her; she would see no one but me, go out with no one but me; she would do whatever I desired, and she would be faithful to me; that is the way I arranged matters in my mind.

The next morning I considered what I had to do; I had no time to lose. I dressed in haste, and as I closed my door I ran into Raymond, who was coming to pay me a visit, in his morning gown.

"Going out already?" he said.

"Yes, neighbor; I have a great deal to do to-day."

"The devil! I wanted to talk with you."

"You must wait until another time."

"You didn't join me yesterday at the Cafe Turc; I waited in the garden till ten o'clock."

"I am very sorry. Adieu!"

"But I say, what about my picture? Has Agathe my picture?"

I had ceased to listen, and was at the foot of the stairs. I scoured the neighborhood in search of a suitable room. I wanted one of which I could have immediate possession, and one that was not far from my own lodgings. I had not succeeded in finding what I desired,--they were all either too high up, or too dark, or too dirty,--and I was walking along with my nose in the air, looking for signs, when, as I paused in front of a porte cochere, I heard a faint cough near me. It seemed to me to be a simulated cough; I turned, and saw Nicette. I was within two yards of her stand and had no idea of it. Nicette looked at me, then lowered her eyes; she dared not bow to me or speak to me by daylight. Poor child! At that moment I remembered her bouquet, which I had entirely forgotten; I had never thanked her for her thoughtfulness. I walked up to her, and, as I selected a few flowers, told her in an undertone how deeply touched I was by her remembrance. She blushed with pleasure, and I walked away followed by her eyes.

At last I found what I wanted, on Rue Caumartin; two small rooms which were very neat and clean, very light, and could be occupied at once. It only remained to furnish them; and with plenty of money nothing is so easy. I hastened to an upholsterer's, bought all that I required, and had it sent to the house with me. In less than three hours the little suite was completely furnished. At first I intended to supply only what was strictly necessary, but my self-esteem interfered; I determined to give Caroline a pleasant surprise; she must have an easy-chair for resting, and a sofa for us two. A pretty woman must have plenty of mirrors; but, above all else, she must have a dressing table and a comfortable bed. She must have curtains to s.h.i.+eld her from the gaze of her neighbors; and they must be lined, to lessen the glare of the sun; lastly, she must have a little clock, so that we should not forget the time while talking of love, and I did not expect to talk of anything else to Caroline. All these little details carried me much further than I had at first proposed; but I would try to economize in some other direction, and those were extraordinary expenses and of infrequent occurrence.

At last everything was ready; I had the keys of the apartment. There was no concierge in the house; that meant one less spy. But I must provide for everything; Caroline would come that evening to take up her abode in that quarter, which was unfamiliar to her; I must, at the very least, be prepared to offer her some supper; surely there was a restaurant in the neighborhood, and I would go at once to order a dainty repast. But had I thought of everything that required to be done before my mistress should take possession of her new abode? would she have everything she needed?

I decided to place fifteen louis in the commode, with which she could provide for her immediate wants; for in the first days of her changed position she would hardly feel like working, and that would be very excusable, a girl's head is so easily turned! But we become accustomed to everything, and it seemed to me that if my pretty flowermaker chose to be respectable and orderly, and to behave herself, she might be very happy.

I went to the restaurant and ordered a dainty supper for nine o'clock.

Then I set about trying to kill time until evening; it was dinner time, but I was not hungry; no matter! I determined to dine, as that would give me some occupation. When I had dined, it was six o'clock; I had still two hours and a half before me, which would never end, I thought.

I decided to take a walk; it occurred to me that I should not be sorry to meet Raymond, to divert my thoughts. So I went to Rue Vivienne, where the milliner's shop was in which Agathe was engaged; I was sure that Raymond would be prowling about the neighborhood.

As I drew near the shop, I saw a number of people collected about a paper pasted on the wall within a few yards of the door. I was not in the habit of stopping to read about lost dogs or other chattels; but I saw that everybody was laughing, and concluded that it was not one of those ordinary placards. I walked toward the crowd and listened:

"It's a good joke," said one.

"It's a most excellent trick," said another; "I'm sure it's a good likeness; I recognize that profile."

I pushed my way to the front, and--what did I see? Raymond's silhouette pasted on a great white sheet of paper, with these words written above in huge letters:

"Notice to ladies, young and old. The original of this portrait is looking for a lady of from fifteen to thirty-six years who is willing to accept a dinner in a private dining room."

I readily guessed the author of that piece of deviltry. Agathe and her shopmates were standing in the doorway, laughing till they cried to see the crowd in front of the silhouette and to hear the various remarks. I was moved to pity for poor Raymond; if I had dared, I would have removed his unlucky face, thus exposed to the laughter of the pa.s.sers-by. To be sure, it was hardly possible to recognize it in that black profile; but my neighbor had a very peculiar cast of countenance; and the artist, unluckily for Raymond, had caught his likeness perfectly; indeed, he had had abundant time to practise, as Raymond had pa.s.sed the whole evening in his booth.

Among the spectators I noticed little Friquet, whom one could always be sure of finding in front of posters, caricature shops, cake sellers, street singers, and all sorts of open-air shows. The little fellow had recognized Raymond; he was holding his sides with laughter, and crying:

"I say! I know him! It's Monsieur Raymond; he comes to my aunt's house to sing! Oh! it's he, sure enough! What a shame to paste him up there!"

And although he characterized it as a shame, the rascal kept repeating:

"I know him: it's Monsieur Raymond, who comes to my aunt's."

I was about to walk away, when I turned and saw Raymond parading in front of Agathe's shop, playing the dandy and ogling her with significant glances, to which she replied only with roars of laughter.

The poor devil was walking toward his portrait; if Friquet saw him, he was lost; the little clerk would not fail to make him known to the crowd. I determined to try to save him from that humiliation. I hastened toward him, took his arm, and tried to lead him away with me.