Well that was a turn-up for the books! What will Athos do about the 'job offer'?
Thank you for reading and reviewing. If any errors have slipped through here, my apologies.
CHAPTER 90
I
Athos was horrified and Tréville furious, but Richelieu was oblivious to all of that.
"You cannot simply purloin my lieutenant because it suits you," Tréville hissed. It had been a while since Athos had seen him so angry.
"You will, no doubt, wish to discuss it further and the impact this might have on the Musketeers, but you will see that it is the most sensible suggestion given the circumstances. Captain Athos has been involved at the highest level since all this began; he is privy to all the information surrounding the rebels' plot. It is fortuitous and prevents me from having to make a hurried decision as to Planque's successor and then making whoever it is cognisant of all that has brought us to this point. Think of it as a reward for the risks he has taken thus far on the King's behalf."
Athos' mouth dropped open in amazement, not least because the Cardinal was clearly not going to take 'no' for an answer and was already referring to him by his new rank, but he could not find the words to voice his objections. How could Richelieu view this as a reward? Tréville obviously had similar thoughts.
"Oh we will discuss it, I can assure you," and he strode towards the door. "Athos, with me!"
As Athos followed the man who commanded him, the man whom he would follow unquestioningly through the gates of hell itself, he felt the eyes of the other man who would command him boring into his back. How had this come about that the two powerful men were now in dispute over who should be deserving of his service and loyalty? Could he commit to both? No, he was Tréville's man.
In the space of a few hours, the whole situation at Versailles had descended to the level of a farce!
II
Allaire had convinced L'Hernault to walk with him in the grounds in front of the lodge. At first, L'Hernault had refused, preferring to remain in the other man's room but Allaire's reasoning had been very persuasive. It would appear more suspicious to hide away for there had been no witnesses to the Musketeer's death and the weapon was safely concealed for the time being.
L'Hernault had eventually agreed but they had been outside for little more than ten minutes when their way was blocked by three tall Musketeers, hands resting deceptively lightly upon their sword hilts.
"Gentlemen," Allaire greeted them lightly for he was trying not to show that he recognised the big, scowling soldier as the one who had followed him around the court and Paris for several days. In fact, he had seen all of them at the Palace. "We were just taking a turn in the fresh air and suddenly you bar our path. If you wouldn't mind stepping to one side, my friend and I would like to proceed on our way."
Did he imagine it or did the same big Musketeer just growl?
The soldiers were serious and clearly not in the mood for pleasantries; it was hardly surprising if they had learned of the death of one of their own.
"I am Aramis of the King's Musketeers," said one of them, introducing himself with a deceptively polite tone. "We would like you to accompany us to answer some questions," he explained, looking directly at L'Hernault.
"What could you possibly want with us?" Allaire insisted, deliberately misinterpreting the invitation and including himself.
"You misunderstand me, sir," Aramis said, turning his attention to Allaire. "We do not require your presence … at the moment."
"Me? Why would you want to see me? Questions about what?" There was no hiding the sweat that suddenly beaded L'Hernault's brow.
"Yes, what is this about? What questions could you possibly have for my friend here?" Allaire decided that a strong display of unity was needed but then noted that he would have to stop emphasising the 'friend' aspect.
"We'd prefer to discuss this somewhere else," the big one stated.
The third soldier, quietly watching until now, added his comment. "We'll explain everything then."
Allaire could not account for what drove him to be obdurate at that point. "You will explain, sirs , right now as to what all this is about and why you should interrogate one of His Majesty's guests. The King will hear of this."
"You're right, 'e will," the big Musketeer agreed. "That's if 'e hasn't been told already. I dare say 'e won't be very 'appy when 'e finds out that the Captain of the Red Guard's been shot dead an' I shouldn't imagine the Cardinal's jumpin' for joy either."
III
In an uncharacteristic role reversal, Athos was pacing the floor repeatedly muttering, "No, no, no, no, no," whilst Tréville leaned, arms folded, against a table and watched him. They had appropriated the first empty room they had come across and the Musketeer Captain had slammed the door shut behind them. In the intervening minutes, he had calmed down considerably as he thought more about Richelieu's shock announcement.
"I did not anticipate that," he said eventually.
Athos stopped in the middle of the room. "It is out of the question, of course."
"And why would you think that?" Tréville asked quietly.
The younger man looked at him aghast. "Tell me you are not considering this proposal! There are plenty of reasons. Firstly, if I am not recovered enough to be a fully functioning Musketeer, I can hardly assume the mantle of Captain of a different regiment, especially one that hates any and all Musketeers. If food were enough to cause a brawl, then the news of my appointment should be tantamount to a full-scale riot! And what if this led me to a conflict of interest? No man can serve two masters. My loyalty is to you, not the Cardinal, and yet he would expect it of me."
Tréville pushed away from the table and moved to a chair, signalling to Athos to sit on another one across from him.
"I think you are creating obstacles." It was a mild reproof and when Athos tried to object, Tréville continued. "Richelieu gave me the ultimate authority over both regiments whilst we are in the field. Planque was resentful but he did reluctantly accept my leadership. I knew from the outset that he was not going to be an easy man in any negotiation. Yes, he passed on my instructions, but he did not monitor their application. Even I have seen a worrying laxity in the attitude of the Red Guard towards their duties and we have only been here for just over a day. Let's consider the major positive aspect here. I, for one, would much prefer to have someone in charge of them whom I trusted and with whom I know I could work."
Athos sighed, "You make it sound so easy."
Tréville offered a reassuring smile. "It is only temporary, Richelieu said as much, and I will keep him to it. Look upon it as valuable practice for a future, permanent command of your own." He laughed as Athos regarded him in alarm. "There's no need to worry; I have no plans for going anywhere any time soon."
"I am pleased to hear it." Athos was clearly relieved. "My mind is still filled with problems and questions about the practicality of all this; I am far from ready for such responsibility. It is not that long ago that you made me your lieutenant."
"And I regret that I did not do it a lot sooner. You must not under-estimate yourself. From what I have heard about today's events, you have conducted yourself well and demonstrated initiative and leadership; they would only be what I have come to expect from you. Don't even think of denying it!"
Athos' head dipped in embarrassment, but the corners of his mouth twitched.
"So," Tréville said decisively, getting to his feet and closely followed by Athos, "we'd better go back and tell Richelieu that we both agree to his suggestion. We will discuss your doubts after that. In the meantime, perhaps we should remove this," and, stepping forward, he reached out to unbuckle Athos' pauldron. "We have no desire to antagonise the Red Guard any more than is absolutely necessary."
"The second time in a month," Athos murmured, watching the Captain's fingers as they worked.
"I would prefer it if you refrained from making a habit of this," Tréville said, a note of mock irritation in his voice. He stepped back, holding the precious leather item in his hands. "Once again I seem to be looking after this on your behalf."
"But not for long," Athos reiterated.
"Not for long, son," Tréville repeated with the ghost of a smile. He held out a hand and the younger man took it. Clasping it, he shook it firmly. "Congratulations on your promotion, Captain Athos of the Red Guard. I look forward to working with you in this new capacity."
A/N
Well, you learn something new every day! I had not realised that the convention of the French farce was as early as this.
In the 14th century, the English adopted farce from Middle French with its original meaning of "forcemeat" or "stuffing." The comedic sense in English dates from the 16th century, when we imported the word again, to refer to a kind of knockabout comedy already popular in France.