第263章

Now, in order not to presume on this, and also to be beforehand with them, I have, if agreeable to you, thought of inviting M.and Madame Danglars, and M.and Madame de Villefort, to my country-house at Auteuil.If I were to invite you and the Count and Countess of Morcerf to this dinner, I should give it the appearance of being a matrimonial meeting, or at least Madame de Morcerf would look upon the affair in that light, especially if Baron Danglars did me the honor to bring his daughter.In that case your mother would hold me in aversion, and I do not at all wish that; on the contrary, I desire to stand high in her esteem.""Indeed, count," said Morcerf, "I thank you sincerely for having used so much candor towards me, and I gratefully accept the exclusion which you propose.You say you desire my mother's good opinion; I assure you it is already yours to a very unusual extent.""Do you think so?" said Monte Cristo, with interest.

"Oh, I am sure of it; we talked of you an hour after you left us the other day.But to return to what we were saying.

If my mother could know of this attention on your part --and I will venture to tell her -- I am sure that she will be most grateful to you; it is true that my father will be equally angry." The count laughed."Well," said he to Morcerf, "but I think your father will not be the only angry one; M.and Madame Danglars will think me a very ill-mannered person.They know that I am intimate with you -- that you are, in fact; one of the oldest of my Parisian acquaintances -- and they will not find you at my house;they will certainly ask me why I did not invite you.Be sure to provide yourself with some previous engagement which shall have a semblance of probability, and communicate the fact to me by a line in writing.You know that with bankers nothing but a written document will be valid.""I will do better than that," said Albert; "my mother is wishing to go to the sea-side -- what day is fixed for your dinner?""Saturday."

"This is Tuesday -- well, to-morrow evening we leave, and the day after we shall be at Treport.Really, count, you have a delightful way of setting people at their ease.""Indeed, you give me more credit than I deserve; I only wish to do what will be agreeable to you, that is all.""When shall you send your invitations?"

"This very day."

"Well, I will immediately call on M.Danglars, and tell him that my mother and myself must leave Paris to-morrow.I have not seen you, consequently I know nothing of your dinner.""How foolish you are! Have you forgotten that M.Debray has just seen you at my house?""Ah, true,"

"Fix it this way.I have seen you, and invited you without any ceremony, when you instantly answered that it would be impossible for you to accept, as you were going to Treport.""Well, then, that is settled; but you will come and call on my mother before to-morrow?""Before to-morrow? -- that will be a difficult matter to arrange, besides, I shall just be in the way of all the preparations for departure.""Well, you can do better.You were only a charming man before, but, if you accede to my proposal, you will be adorable.""What must I do to attain such sublimity?""You are to-day free as air -- come and dine with me; we shall be a small party -- only yourself, my mother, and I.

You have scarcely seen my mother; you shall have an opportunity of observing her more closely.She is a remarkable woman, and I only regret that there does not exist another like her, about twenty years younger; in that case, I assure you, there would very soon be a Countess and Viscountess of Morcerf.As to my father, you will not see him; he is officially engaged, and dines with the chief referendary.We will talk over our travels; and you, who have seen the whole world, will relate your adventures --you shall tell us the history of the beautiful Greek who was with you the other night at the Opera, and whom you call your slave, and yet treat like a princess.We will talk Italian and Spanish.Come, accept my invitation, and my mother will thank you.""A thousand thanks," said the count, "your invitation is most gracious, and I regret exceedingly that it is not in my power to accept it.I am not so much at liberty as you suppose; on the contrary, I have a most important engagement.""Ah, take care, you were teaching me just now how, in case of an invitation to dinner, one might creditably make an excuse.I require the proof of a pre-engagement.I am not a banker, like M.Danglars, but I am quite as incredulous as he is.""I am going to give you a proof," replied the count, and he rang the bell.

"Humph," said Morcerf, "this is the second time you have refused to dine with my mother; it is evident that you wish to avoid her." Monte Cristo started."Oh, you do not mean that," said he; "besides, here comes the confirmation of my assertion." Baptistin entered, and remained standing at the door."I had no previous knowledge of your visit, had I?""Indeed, you are such an extraordinary person, that I would not answer for it.""At all events, I could not guess that you would invite me to dinner.""Probably not."

"Well, listen, Baptistin, what did I tell you this morning when I called you into my laboratory?""To close the door against visitors as soon as the clock struck five," replied the valet.

"What then?"

"Ah, my dear count," said Albert.