Suzanne exclaimed, but before Nick could answer footsteps were heard in the path and Lenoir himself, perspiring, panting, exhausted, appeared in the midst of us.
``Suzanne!'' he cried, ``Suzanne!'' And turning to Nick, he added quite simply, ``So, Monsieur, you did not run off with her, after all?''
``There was no place to run, Monsieur,'' answered Nick.
``Praise be to God for that!'' said the miller, heartily, ``there is some advantage in living in the wilderness, when everything is said.''
``I shall come back and try, Monsieur,'' said Nick.
The miller raised his hands.
``I assure you that he will not, Monsieur,'' I put in.
He thanked me profusely, and suddenly an idea seemed to strike him.
``There is the priest,'' he cried; ``Monsieur le cure retires late.There is the priest, Monsieur.''
There was an awkward silence, broken at length by an exclamation from Gaspard.Colonel Chouteau turned his back, and I saw his shoulders heave.All eyes were on Nick, but the rascal did not seem at all perturbed.
``Monsieur,'' he said, bowing, ``marriage is a serious thing, and not to be entered into lightly.I thank you from my heart, but I am bound now with Mr.Ritchie on an errand of such importance that I must make a sacrifice of my own interests and affairs to his.''
``If Mr.Temple wishes--'' I began, with malicious delight.But Nick took me by the shoulder.
``My dear Davy,'' he said, giving me a vicious kick, ``Icould not think of it.I will go with you at once.Adieu, Mademoiselle,'' said he, bending over Suzanne's unresisting hand.``Adieu, Messieurs, and I thank you for your great interest in me.'' (This to Gaspard and Hippolyte.)``And now, Monsieur Gratiot, I have already presumed too much on your patience.I will follow you, Monsieur.''
We left them, Lenoir, Suzanne, and her two suitors, standing at the pond, and made our way through the path in the forest.It was not until we reached the road and had begun to climb out of the valley that the silence was broken between us.
``Monsieur,'' said Colonel Chouteau, slyly, ``do you have many such escapes?''
``It might have been closer,'' said Nick.
``Closer?'' ejaculated the Colonel.
``Assuredly,'' said Nick, ``to the extent of abducting Monsieur le cure.As for you, Davy,'' he added, between his teeth, ``I mean to get even with you.''
It was well for us that the Colonel and Monsieur Gratiot took the escapade with such good nature.And so we walked along through the summer night, talking gayly, until at length the lights of the village twinkled ahead of us, and in the streets we met many parties making merry on their homeward way.We came to Monsieur Gratiot's, bade our farewells to Madame, picked up our saddle-bags, the two gentlemen escorting us down to the river bank where the keel boat was tugging at the ropes that held her, impatient to be off.Her captain, a picturesque Canadian by the name of Xavier Paret, was presented to us; we bade our friends farewell, and stepped across the plank to the deck.As we were casting off, Monsieur Gratiot called to us that he would take the first occasion to send our horses back to Kentucky.The oars were manned, the heavy hulk moved, and we were shot out into the mighty current of the river on our way to New Orleans.
Nick and I stood for a long time on the deck, and the windows of the little village gleamed like stars among the trees.We passed the last of its houses that nestled against the hill, and below that the forest lay like velvet under the moon.The song of our boatmen broke the silence of the night:--``Voici le temps et la saison, Voici le temps et la saison, Ah! vrai, que les journees sont longues, Ah! vrai, que les journees sont longues!''