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"I hope," said Ragoczy, doing his best to present an unperturbed deh to travel in two or three days; her fever isIf she continues to iret, Graf, that we have had to trespass on your hospitality in this way" He spoke with sincerity; he did not like being at Ravensberg and wanted to be gone from the Schloss at the first opportunity: he knew Hero shared his aversion to the place

"You have reason to want to be gone," said von Ravensberg in punctiliously

"As you oczy had been busy in the library for , and was a bit surprised to see von Ravensberg here It was four days since the confrontation in the old oczy had encountered von Ravensberg since Medoc&039;s funeral, two days before During those intervening days, the Schloss had been filled with a growing tension that wasfrom the room to which Hyacinthie had been confined; they echoed eerily through the Schloss as if she were already a ghost haunting it

"I realize it is a great inconvenience for us both, for you to be kept here while your companion recovers froins and it is safe for her to travel" He coughed once and fingered the revers of his Turkish dressing-gown "Youbusiness awaiting your return to Yvoire"

"You one Your prospects for cooczy, puzzled by von Ravensberg&039;s behavior; with the hurried departure of all the guests but Ragoczy and Hero, the Graf had cut hi from his laboratory for meals and little else; his appearance in the library was unanticipated, leaving Ragoczy to wonder what von Ravensberg hoped to acco way to gloriously blue skies and a day as clean-swept as the floor of the Great Hall Snow reh slopes, but the freshets and streaone in a month The scent of cherry and apple blossoh the open s on a flirting breeze

"What cannot be changed s have been thrust upon me that I must-" He stopped "Not that I would wish you to leave while your co her first recovery from-but your presence creates an aardness" His tone implied that he wanted to be rid of that aardness

"I apologize for any discommodation our presence may cause you; I ere able to leave at once: believe this Nothing would be more welcome to me than to relieve you of some of the burdens we have inadvertently imposed In a day or till at least re inn Of course I will provide the wages for your staff whose service you have lost in our maintenance, and oczy said, putting the book he had been reading aside

Von Ravensberg&039;s face was expressionless "All things considered, giving you the shelter ofthatNo recoenerosity" He went to an easy chair near the fireplace, stood beside it but did not sit down "I wanted to inforistrate will be here this afternoon, with his clerk, to ard to how Constanz Medoc died Before any judgistrate will decide if there can or should be a trial I wonder if you would like to address hiiven the severity of the attack you sustained? Or would you prefer to say nothing about it, for Madame von Scharffensee&039;s sake"

Ragoczy did not answer at once, and when he did, it ith conviction "I think itone; Magistrate Schmidt will have many accounts to compare The more information he has, the more apt he is to arrive at the truth"

"Certainly; if that is what you want," said von Ravensberg as if this were a final disgrace; he refused to look at Ragoczy "You are cohts to do so, and any embarrassment you sustain is not likely to follow you as far as Swiss France The Magistrate will be grateful for your testioczy "An exile, like yourself, does not have to uphold the same decorum that those of us established in a place have to preserve"

Ragoczy did not respond to von Ravensberg&039;s deprecation "You have arded the Graf in studious sy, with so much unresolved"

"I have nizant of your scruples, and I can hardly blame you for-You endured much at myniece&039;s hands, you and Madarined I am by how she has behaved" He waved one hand in dish of this most calamitous reflection What&039;s done cannot be undone I will do as ave Medoc a fine burial, so we cannot be said to have slighted hied to pay my ward&039;s dowry to Medoc&039;s brother, as a tribute to his memory" He assumed an unctuous air, and went on as if this were the sole purpose of their conversation "Youthe latest sample of blood I have to an electrical current Surely this must interest you"

"Ordinarily it probably would, but just now, I think not," said Ragoczy, enuine ee your mind, I will be pleased to demonstrate " He inclined his head and turned to leave the rooht of ill beco shot an infuriated glance at hin of displeasure "I assue of my rank does not extend to her, and she must answer for her deeds without me to shield her The law cannot be seen to condone murder She has killed her fiance and attempted to kill Madaoczy in theon the weather "The court will make allowances for that"

"Why should the court do so?" Von Ravensberg was on guard now, for all that he tried to seee should have soned" He thought back to Roe of twenty-one "There is legal precedence for such judgment"

"The otten would be thehell in an asylum, or a life of confinement in a prison, the object of thecame a few steps back into the room "You have no wish to see her free, do you?"

"No, but I doubt her death will negate her deeds," Ragoczy said

"It will answer Medoc&039;s fa, "and help to restore the honor of this House"

A distant shriek shuddered through the oczy said,if von Ravensberg woulddid not say anything about the sound; he shook his head "You cannot understand It is not in your blood You have no grasp of our nimiety in the eyes of the public-"

"I know that riches and possessions are often envied by those in less advantageous circuoczy interjected

"Then you know the resentment we suffer on that account Despite your wealth, as an exile, you are unable to comprehend the manner in which ill have to a a sacrifice of an insane child will rehabilitate your family name? Given her history, no, Graf, I do not understand; I aoczy kept his te in his ht?"

"This fro folded his arms "I was told it was eleven times"

The actual count enty-three ti along those lines," he answered in as unflustered a voice as he could "She was raving when she did it"

"You find that an excuse?" von Ravensberg asked "I would have thought you, of all people, would hold her accountable for her actions"

"Because she stabbed oczy shook his head "She is not the first who has, and she will not be the last" Over the centuries he had received many dire wounds, but the only one that had left a mark on him was the scars that crossed his abdomen, tokens of the evisceration that had killed hio; since his death no injury, nonodded twice "That is what I meant Her attack on you-a o unpunished I a retribution more vehemently than I She concealed her acts, which shows that they were purposeful, not impulsive, as true madness is known to be That you had to seek her out and withstand her attempts on your lifeAnd that is not all: she has maimed your companion Madame von Scharffensee ith a limp and her face will never recover from the marks she made on it; you&039;ve said so yourself"

"That is more difficult to pardon, but I doubt that Madame von Scharffensee will be restored because Hyacinthie is dead"

"A philosophy of weakness and concession!" von Ravensberg declared "You will not find such pap in the veins of Austrians"

"I doubt you will find character in the blood at all," said Ragoczy, his reserve beco or, and the heritage of every man alive Even you cannot deny that One day I shall demonstrate it beyond cavil, no matter how little you may think it possible What is borne in blood is thesaid

"No, Graf: what is borne in blood is the incarnation of the soul," Ragoczy responded quietly

"Soul?" von Ravensberg scoffed "You know very little about it: I have devoted my life to its study"

"I know it is the sum total of the uniqueness of the person who possesses it Nothing ishuman"

"That is what I seek to de to be measured and certain, not some foolish ro said eiven at birth Austrians and Germans are the descendants of the Franks More than the French, we bear the heritage of Charle-shouldered, strong-willed leader of the Franks froathered around him "They were ambitious barbarians-as were almost all peoples in Europe then"

"You tell me my niece is a barbarian because she is Austrian? Barbarian! Hardly Not that any ne: he was the founder of our civilization, a greattapped his toe ioczy refused to be distracted by von Ravensberg&039;s self-congratulatory claim "I tell you that Hyacinthie is Hyacinthie and no one else; her blood is unique to her, far beyond being Austrian Heritage she may have, as do all people, but she is ini that he would never want to taste her blood no reat his need, then continued, "Whatever inclined her to such fury did not come from her blood, it came from what life has imposed upon her"

"That inclines you to defend &039;s countenance was filled with incredulity

"It is certainly part of it," Ragoczy said

"She has done so arded Ragoczy with an expression that combined shame with conteoczy turned the full weight of his dark, enig

The Graf did his best not to flinch "I have been taught that if we, the leaders, abuse the law, bend it to our fancy and make it lax, we cannot be surprised when our lessers do the same It for us to set the example, to endorse the actions of the courts, and to support the Magistrates in their duties You bewilder me Comte: you say you are of an ancient House, and yet you would spare her life"

"Hyacinthie is mad I cannot hold her responsible when she cannot be held capable of distinguishing the nature of her acts"

"One of those humanists, are you? a follower of Rousseau and the rest of those foolish idealists? Do you glorify the co asked, as if finally satisfied to knohat prooczy&039;s stance "A man of your rank should have more sense Those so-called reformers are our eneoczy did not respond to the rebuke "I have said it already: she is your niece, and you must share some responsibility for her actions You did not see her at the ave her She learned her fury soone you have sent her"

"I?" He gave Ragoczy an incredulous stare "How can you ular in character, and so h the Schloss, another reminder that Hyacinthie was still within the walls

"I say all of the human species has the capacity to do violence, and the capacity for compassion Like you, I have studied the hu that hu, but he was seeking answers, and was prepared to continue until he had the did notso presu of the nature of blood: it is blood that shapes much of what becomes of anyone but it is only a potential: life imposes upon us all; how the iencies of life go beyond the capacity of blood" He thought of Acanna Tupac, of Leocadia, and Csimenae, all driven by events beyond the limits of their character into desperate acts "You have been responsible for Hyacinthie as a youngster, and so her upbringing, her education, and her training have been in your hands You have uardians do She has been under your protection for most of her life, and yet it seems that you had no notion of the state of her mind You-a man of science, who prides himself on his observations-you had no apprehension that your ward, your niece, was in such desperate straits that she succumbed to madness I cannot help but wonder why this should be so"

"I assue It is a great thing to be proe, especially for an orphan like her, who has only the portion I grant her to bring to the union Many girls experience so started toward the door again "It is what I thought when she seee was the only cause of her oczy asked; he tapped the book on the table at his side "Her journals suggest otherwise"

"Her journals?" Von Ravensberg hite about the mouth "What journals?"

"Did you not know she kept the it appears you do not know about Fraulein Hyacinthie"

Von Ravensberg gave a fussy tug to the sash of his dressing-gown "What journals do you mean?"