Her Royal Lover: A Novel — page 131: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

HER ROYAL LOVER. 123 Najeska Ivanowna made her the most veracious and most natural person in the world. Without any diplomacy, she had inclined to confidence and in- genuousness, without foreseeing the consequences of her disclosures, it was necessary that she related all that which she knew, all that which happened to her. Recalling the scenes of the past, she said to her- self, that to avoid them there was only one means, to be silent! The king was right. Her husband was too much the slave of his duty, to neglect the affairs of his government and go out before having dispatched the courier with the most important dispatches of the week. Followed by her groom, she set out, then, at ten o’clock precisely ; for in order to arrive at the Parc- aux-Cerfs, it required fully half an hour. Since the murder of poor Kassan, she had, notwithstand- ing the elasticity of her youth, become very nervous, and this terrible episode was mingled with all her thoughts. | The interment of the previous day had affected her very much; but, gradually, this cruel remem- brance and all the uneasiness which assailed her was dissipated by the invigorating air of the morn- ing. After all, what harm was she doing? The king had not requested anything very serious of her. | And while, the bridle upon his neck, she was letting her horse guide himself, she dreamed now no longer of the king, but much of theman. There was no use to deny it; the man was exceedingly fascinating. That was a gentleman, full of intelli- gence, filled with tact and magnanimity. Eomichbooks.com