Page:The Story of Manon Lescaut and of the Chevalier des Grieux.pdf/167

house. I enjoyed a sense of delight in this exercise of my new-found liberty, which, as my friend had assured me, there was now no further danger of my losing. It suddenly occurred to me, however, that his assurances referred only to St. Lazare, and that, besides this, I had the affair of the Hôpital still to answer for, not to mention the murder of Lescaut, in which I was concerned, if only as a witness. The recollection of these circumstances so terrified me that I retreated into the nearest alley-way, and sent for a coach, in which I drove straight to M. de T———'s. He laughed heartily at my fright, and, indeed, I could not help smiling at it myself, when he informed me that there were no unpleasant consequences to be apprehended either from the Hôpital adventure or Lescaut's death. He told me that, thinking he might be suspected of having taken part in Manon's abduction, he had gone to the Hôpital that morning and asked to see her—pretending to know nothing of what had happened. So far from accusing either him or myself of any complicity in the affair, the authorities at the Hôpital had eagerly related the whole occurrence to him, as an extraordinary piece of news; and had expressed their astonishment that such a pretty girl as Manon should