"
"Excuse me. Without her knowledge, you say?" The Commandant turned
to the Princess, who bowed her head but continued to gaze at me from
under her lowered brows. "Absolutely, sir."
"And without knowledge of her errand? Again excuse me, but does it
not occur to you that you may be intruding at this moment upon a
family affair?"
Here the Prince broke in with a scornful laugh. For a minute or so
his brow had been clearing, but, though he sneered, he could not as
yet meet his sister's eye. I noted this as his laugh drew my gaze
upon him, and it seemed that my contempt gave me a sudden clear
insight; for I found myself answering the Commandant very
deliberately--
"The Princess, sir, until a moment ago, perhaps knew not whether I
was alive or dead, and certainly knew not that I was within a hundred
miles of this place. Had she known it, she would as certainly not
have confided her errand to me, mixed up as it is with her brother's
shame. She would, I dare rather wager, have taken great pains to
hide it from me. And yet I will not pretend that I am quite ignorant
of it, as neither will I allow--family affair though it be--that I
have no interest in it, seeing that it concerns the crown of
Corsica.
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