"You'll remember, General, that you arrived late; you understand? and having been observed by me, were admitted; and--and all the rest occurred naturally."
"Yes, sir, any d--d lie you like. All the world's lying--why should not I?"
At the foot of the staircase Jacques was dismissed, having lighted bed-room candles for the two gentlemen, so that they lost something of their air of Spanish conspirators, and they mounted the stairs together in a natural and domestic fashion.
When they had crossed the lobby, and stood at the door of the dressing-room, Varbarriere laid his hand on General Lennox's arm--
"Stop here a moment; you must knock at Lady Alice's door over there, and get the key of your room. She locks the door and keeps the key at night. Make no noise, you know."
They had been fortunate hitherto in having escaped observation; and Varbarriere's strategy had, up to this point, quite succeeded.
"Very quietly, mind," whispered he, and withdrew behind the angle of the wall, toward the staircase.
Old Lennox was by this time at the door which he had indicated, and knocked. There was a little fuss audible within, but no answer. He knocked again more sharply, and he heard the gabble of female voices; and at last a rather nervous inquiry, "Who's there, please?"
"General Lennox, who wants the key of his room," answered he, in no mood to be trifled with. The General was standing, grim as fate, and stark as Corporal Trim, bed-room candle in hand, outside her door.
"He's _not_ General Lennox--send him about his business," exclaimed an imperious female voice from the state bed, in which Lady Alice was sitting, measuring some mysterious drops in a graduated glass.
"My lady says she's sorry she can't find it to-night, sir, being at present in bed, please, sir."
"Come, child--no nonsense--I want my key, and I'll have it," replied the General, so awfully that the maid recoiled.
"I think, my lady, he'll be rude if he doesn't get it."
"A nice-spoken gentleman, my lady, and dressed very respectable."
Neither had Lady Alice; but she had heard him minutely described.
"A lean ugly old man is he, with white bristly whiskers, you know, and a white head, and little grey eyes, eh?"
They had no notion that their little confidence was so distinctly audible to the General without, who stood eyeing the panel fiercely as a sentry would a suspicious figure near his beat, and with fingers twitching with impatience to clutch his key.