It was after one of these bursts of misery15 that the Comte de Montemar, who had been engaged with papers at the further end of the apartment, approached and sought to comfort him by an appeal to those holier feelings, which Montgomeri possessed16 in a much higher degree than most of his countrymen.
“It is not well, my friend,” De Montemar said, “to poison thus the brief moments we may yet pass together. Remember, thou wert no willing agent of that higher power, by whose mandate17 alone it was that our monarch fell. All may seem dark, yet even out of darkness He brought forth18 light—out of a very chaos19 the most unwavering order; and does He not do so still? Abide20 by the advice of those who urge thee to quit France till order is restored, and our gracious sovereign’s last words remembered and acted upon. Italian blood is hot and eager to avenge21; but fear not, we shall meet again in happier days, and, oh, embitter22 not thus the few moments still left my poor child!”
Softened23 and subdued24 more than he had been yet, Montgomeri folded his arm round the weeping Idalie, kissed the tears from her pale cheek, conjured her forgiveness, and promised to battle with the despondency that almost crushed him.
“And wilt25 thou indeed do this?” she rejoined, imploringly26. “Oh, bless thee for such promise! Yet I fear thee, Montgomeri. And when apart from me, and these troubled thoughts regain27 ascendency, thou wilt rush on danger, on death, to escape them. Think, then, dearest, that it is not your own life alone which you risk; that one is bound up in it which cannot rest alone. Will the ivy28 blossom and smile when the oak has fallen? And as the oak is to the lowly yet clinging ivy, so art thou to me.”
Folding her still closer, Montgomeri in his turn sought to reassure29 and soothe30, but with less success than usual. Every look and tone of Idalie betrayed that heavy weight which had increased with each day that brought the hour of parting nearer. Breathed to none, and battled with as it had been, still it seemed to hold every faculty31 chained, and at length caused her head to sink on the bosom32 of De Lorges with such a burst of irrepressible anguish33 as to excite his alarm, and tenderly he conjured her to reveal its cause.
“I know it is a weakness, a folly34, Gabriel, unworthy of the woman whom thou lovest; but scorn it not, upbraid35 it not, bid it go from me! Is there not woe36 enough in parting, that before the hope of meeting ever rises a dim and shapeless darkness impossible to be defined, yet so folding round my future as to bury all of hope, of trust, of every feeling, save that we shall not meet as we have parted?”
“Is it change in me thou fearest, love? No. Then heed37 it not; ’tis but a baseless fancy, which will come when the frame is weakened by the anguish of the mind. Believe me—”
He was interrupted. The hangings over the door leading by a private passage to the dauphine’s own rooms were suddenly drawn38 aside, and, closely muffled39, Mary of Scotland stood before them, with anxiety and haste visibly imprinted40 on her features.
“This is no time for ceremony, my lord, or we would apologize for our intrusion,” she said, turning towards the Count de Montemar; “our business is too weighty for an indifferent messenger. Count de Lorges,” she added, addressing him abruptly41, and pausing not for Montemar’s courtly words, “tarry not another night in Paris; you have been unwise to loiter here so long. Pause for no thought, no marvel42. Fly at once; put the broad seas between you and France, and there may be happiness in store for you yet. Dearest Idalie, for thy sake, even as for Montgomeri’s, I am here: do not look upon me thus.”
“Now must we part—now? Your highness means not now!” exclaimed Idalie, as her cold hands convulsively closed round the count’s arm. “What has he done that he should fly?”
“Nothing to call the blush of shame to his cheek or thine, dear child. The words I have heard may mean nothing, may be but wrung43 from woman’s agony, for the grief of Catherine de Medicis is of no softening44 nature; yet ought Montgomeri to leave Paris without delay, for there may be some to act on broken words, even as on an imperial mandate. Detain him not, Idalie; we shall visit Scotland perchance ere long, and there no grief shall damp a bridal.”
“Stay but one moment more, royal lady,” entreated45 De Lorges, as the dauphine turned to go; “one word, for mercy. How fares the king? Is there no more hope? Does he still lay as he has done ever since that fatal stroke?”
Mary looked at him somewhat surprised, and very sorrowfully.
“No, Montgomeri, no!” she said, after a pause of much feeling; “the soul has escaped the shattered prison, and Henri is at rest.”
Montgomeri staggered back with a heavy, almost convulsive groan46. He knew not till that moment how powerfully hope had sustained him. The shock was almost as fearful as if he had never thought of death; and yet the horrible conviction that he was a regicide had scarcely for one instant left his mind.
“Montemar, let not this be, for the sake of thy poor child, of both. Part them ere long,” whispered the queen (dauphine no more), as the count knelt before her in involuntary homage47; “think not of us now. Would to God we were still Dauphine of France and not her queen. Montgomeri’s danger, I fear, is imminent48; let him not linger, and may our Lady guard him still.”
She departed as she spoke49; and Montemar, infected with her evident anxiety, hesitated not to obey.
“Rouse thee, Montgomeri,” he said, earnestly; “fly, for the sake of this poor, drooping50 flower; let not our Idalie weep for a darker doom51 than even this sad parting. Come to thy father’s heart awhile, my child. Have I no claim upon thy love?”
Gently he drew her from Montgomeri’s still detaining arm, almost relieved to find her insensible to any further suffering. His beseeching52 words to fly ere Idalie again awoke to consciousness, moved the count to action. Still he lingered to kiss again and again the pale cheek and lips of his beloved; then convulsively wringing53 the count’s hand, rushed from the room and from the palace at the very moment that voices shouted “Long live Francis the Second, God preserve the King!”
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1
eyebrow
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| n.眉毛，眉 | |
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eventual
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| adj.最后的，结局的，最终的 | |
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suite
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| n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员 | |
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betrothed
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| n. 已订婚者 动词betroth的过去式和过去分词 | |
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sanguine
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| adj.充满希望的，乐观的，血红色的 | |
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6
nay
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| adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者 | |
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plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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conjured
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| 用魔术变出( conjure的过去式和过去分词 )； 祈求，恳求； 变戏法； （变魔术般地） 使…出现 | |
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9
dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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monarch
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| n.帝王，君主，最高统治者 | |
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revered
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| v.崇敬，尊崇，敬畏( revere的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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12
agonizing
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| adj.痛苦难忍的；使人苦恼的v.使极度痛苦；折磨(agonize的ing形式) | |
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13
soothing
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| adj.慰藉的；使人宽心的；镇静的 | |
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deplore
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| vt.哀叹，对...深感遗憾 | |
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misery
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| n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦 | |
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possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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mandate
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| n.托管地；命令，指示 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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chaos
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| n.混乱，无秩序 | |
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abide
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| vi.遵守；坚持；vt.忍受 | |
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avenge
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| v.为...复仇，为...报仇 | |
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embitter
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| v.使苦；激怒 | |
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softened
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| （使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰 | |
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subdued
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| adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词 | |
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wilt
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| v.(使)植物凋谢或枯萎；(指人)疲倦，衰弱 | |
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imploringly
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| adv. 恳求地, 哀求地 | |
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regain
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| vt.重新获得，收复，恢复 | |
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ivy
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| n.常青藤，常春藤 | |
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reassure
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| v.使放心，使消除疑虑 | |
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soothe
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| v.安慰；使平静；使减轻；缓和；奉承 | |
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faculty
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| n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员 | |
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bosom
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| n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的 | |
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anguish
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| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
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folly
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| n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话 | |
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upbraid
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| v.斥责，责骂，责备 | |
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woe
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| n.悲哀，苦痛，不幸，困难；int.用来表达悲伤或惊慌 | |
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heed
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| v.注意，留意；n.注意，留心 | |
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drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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muffled
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| adj.（声音）被隔的；听不太清的；（衣服）裹严的；蒙住的v.压抑，捂住( muffle的过去式和过去分词 )；用厚厚的衣帽包着（自己） | |
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40
imprinted
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| v.盖印（imprint的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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abruptly
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| adv.突然地，出其不意地 | |
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42
marvel
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| vi.(at)惊叹vt.感到惊异；n.令人惊异的事 | |
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43
wrung
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| 绞( wring的过去式和过去分词 )； 握紧（尤指别人的手）； 把（湿衣服）拧干； 绞掉（水） | |
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44
softening
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| 变软，软化 | |
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45
entreated
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| 恳求，乞求( entreat的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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46
groan
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| vi./n.呻吟，抱怨；(发出)呻吟般的声音 | |
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47
homage
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| n.尊敬，敬意，崇敬 | |
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48
imminent
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| adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的 | |
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49
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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50
drooping
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| adj. 下垂的，无力的 动词droop的现在分词 | |
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51
doom
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| n.厄运，劫数；v.注定，命定 | |
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52
beseeching
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| adj.恳求似的v.恳求，乞求（某事物）( beseech的现在分词 ) | |
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53
wringing
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| 淋湿的，湿透的 | |
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