point of
rushing out _coute que coute_, when the lady ran forward; sprang lightly
in; recoiled; and uttered a little breathless cry of surprise and
apprehension!

"_Mon Dieu_, Madame! what is it? Are you hurt?" cried two or three of
the gentlemen, running out, bareheaded, to her assistance.

But, to my amazement, she unfastened her cloak, and threw it over me in
such a manner as to leave me completely hidden beneath the folds.

"Oh, nothing, thank you!--I only caught my foot in my cloak. I am really
quite ashamed to have alarmed you! A thousand thanks--good-night."

And so, with something of a slight tremor in her voice, the lady drew up
the window. The next instant the carriage moved on.

And now, what was to be done? I blessed the accident which rendered me
invisible; but, at the same time, asked myself how it was to end.

Should I wait till she reached her own door, and then, still feigning
sleep, allow myself to be discovered? Or should I take the bull by the
horns, and reveal myself? If the latter, would she scream, or faint, or
go into hysterics? Then, again, supposing she resumed her cloak ... a
cold damp broke out upon my forehead at the mere thought! All at once,
just as these questions flashed across my mind, the lady drew the mantle
aside, and said:--

"How imprudent of you to hide in my carriage?"

I could not believe my ears.

"Suppose any of those people had caught sight of you ... why, it would
have been all over Paris to-morrow! Happily, I had the presence of mind
to cover you with my cloak; otherwise ... but there, Monsieur, I have a
great mind to be very angry with you!"

It was now clear that I was mistaken for some one else. Fortunately the
carriage-lamps were unlit, the windows still blurred with rain, and the
night intensely dark; so, feeling like a wretch reprieved on the
scaffold, I shrank farther and farther into the corner, glad to favor a
mistake which promised some hope of escape.

"_Eh bien_!" said the lady, half tenderly, half reproachfully; "have you
nothing to say to me?"

Say to her, indeed! What could I say to her? Would not my voice betray
me directly?

"Ah," she continued, without waiting for a reply; "you are ashamed of
the cruel scene of this morning! Well, since you have not allowed the
night to pass without seeking a reconciliation, I suppose I must
forgive you!"

I thought, at this point, that I could not do better than press her
hand, which was exquisitely soft