When I sent to invite his return from Tilly it was out of
friendship,--love, if you will, Amelie, but from no desire that he
should plunge into fresh dissipation."
"I believe you, Angelique! You could not, if you had the heart of a
woman loving him ever so little, desire to see him fall into the
clutches of men who, with the wine-cup in one hand and the dice-box
in the other, will never rest until they ruin him, body, soul, and
estate."
"Before God, I never desired it, and to prove it, I have cursed De
Pean to his face, and erased Lantagnac from my list of friends, for
coming to show me the money he had won from Le Gardeur while
intoxicated. Lantagnac brought me a set of pearls which he had
purchased out of his winnings. I threw them into the fire and would
have thrown him after them, had I been a man! 'fore God, I would,
Amelie! I may have wounded Le Gardeur, but no other man or woman
shall injure him with my consent."
Angelique spoke this in a tone of sincerity that touched somewhat
the heart of Amelie, although the aberrations and inconsistencies of
this strange girl perplexed her to the utmost to understand what she
really felt.
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