At this humble portal he knocked; the windows of the
little chalet were open, and the white curtains, behind the flower-pots,
were fluttering as he had seen them before. The door was opened by
a neat young woman, who informed him very promptly that Madame and
Mademoiselle had left Blanquais a couple of hours earlier. They had gone
to Paris--yes, very suddenly, taking with them but little luggage, and
they had left her--she had the honor of being the femme de chambre of
ces dames--to put up their remaining possessions and follow as soon
as possible. On Bernard's expressing surprise and saying that he had
supposed them to be fixed at the sea-side for the rest of the season,
the femme de chambre, who seemed a very intelligent person, begged to
remind him that the season was drawing to a close, that Madame had taken
the chalet but for five weeks, only ten days of which period were yet to
expire, that ces dames, as Monsieur perhaps knew, were great travellers,
who had been half over the world and thought nothing of breaking camp
at an hour's notice, and that, in fine, Madame might very well have
received a telegram summoning her to another part of the country.
"And where have the ladies gone?" asked Bernard.
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