How was he to accomplish this? for she often sent him away unceremoniously, appearing only for a moment between two doors in order to say in a subdued voice, “I’m engaged—for the evening;” or else he found her surrounded by a dozen persons; and when they were alone, so many impediments presented themselves one after the other, that one would have sworn there was a bet to keep matters from going any further. He invited her to dinner; as a rule, she declined the invitation. On one occasion, she accepted it, but did not come.
A Machiavellian idea arose in his brain.
Having heard from Dussardier about Pellerin’s complaints against himself, he thought of giving the artist an order to paint the Maréchale’s portrait, a life-sized portrait, which would necessitate a good number of sittings. He w
