Against it stood only the
suspicions of Mother Holf--fear or money would close her
lips--and the knowledge of Bauer; Bauer's mouth also could be
shut, ay, and should be before we were many days older. My
reverie led me far; I saw the future years unroll before me in
the fair record of a great king's sovereignty. It seemed to me
that by the violence and bloodshed we had passed through, fate,
for once penitent, was but righting the mistake made when Rudolf
was not born a king.
For a long while I stood thus, musing and dreaming; I was roused
by the sound of the door opening and closing; turning, I saw the
queen. She was alone, and came towards me with timid steps. She
looked out for a moment on the square and the people, but drew
back suddenly in apparent fear lest they should see her. Then she
sat down and turned her face towards mine. I read in her eyes
something of the conflict of emotions which possessed her; she
seemed at once to deprecate my disapproval and to ask my
sympathy; she prayed me to be gentle to her fault and kind to her
happiness; self-reproach shadowed her joy, but the golden gleam
of it strayed through. I looked eagerly at her; this would not
have been her bearing had she come from a last farewell; for the
radiance was there, however much dimmed by sorrow and by
fearfulness.
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