As he headed towards the infirmary, Treville just shook his head. The mystery of Bernard's motive was finally solved. Now, he had to tell his Musketeers just why the man had taken vengeance on Aramis.
But as he opened the door, he smiled at the sight of his men. They were all sound asleep, as peaceful as he had ever seen them. The fact that not one of them had stirred when the door was opened was a testimony to just how exhausted from recent events they all must have been, as he knew his men. Normally, four pistols would have been leveled at the door. Instead, he saw two of them prone on beds. Athos was tilted back in his chair, legs stretched out and crossed at the ankles in front of him. Their youngest was sitting on the edge of Aramis' bed, head drooping over his brother's hand, which he held securely between his own.
Sitting down himself, he settled in to wait for them to wake up.
It wasn't until an hour later that Athos began to wake up, languidly stretching his arms up and back over his head, finally spying his Captain sitting quietly in the corner.
"Captain, you should have awakened us. I am sure you have better things to do than to watch us sleep."
"You obviously needed it, Athos," Treville replied. "I should have been informed that all of you were dead on your feet. See that you do not keep me in the dark next time?"
Athos inclined his head at the very mild rebuke, knowing full well how much the man cared about them.
By now, all three of his brothers were also awake.
"I came to tell you all what I have just learned," Treville said. "We now know why Bernard tried so hard to kill you, Aramis.
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He got all of his men's full and complete attention at those words.
"Why, Captain?" Aramis asked in a quiet voice.
"Let me ask you, Aramis. Do you remember a young woman named Lysette-blonde, green-eyed? She had come to Paris from the region of the Dordogne?"
Aramis' eyes went very wide at the name. Athos and Porthos' faces registered recognition, as well. Both Treville and d'Artagnan, who had been silently observing so far, could see their eyes grow very curious now.
"Who is Lysette?" he asked.
Athos replied quietly. "She was someone from Aramis' past. He saved her from Antoine, a brute of a man who had repeatedly raped and beaten her, after her father had sold her to the man in marriage. Aramis came upon her one night while Antoine was yet again brutalizing her in back of a tavern in a village not far from Paris, while returning from a solo mission. After calling out to the man to stop, he ended up having to shoot him when he continued his assault." Turning back to Treville, he asked him, "What has Lysette got to do with Bernard?"
Treville said he would soon get to that, and continued. "Aramis brought the young woman back to her house afterwards. Her sister-in-law was there, and took her in her arms to comfort her. Aramis was already delayed getting back with the letter for the King that he had been sent to deliver, so, after telling the owner of the bar to contact the proper authorities about the body in back of the tavern, he had to leave for Paris. We thought that was the end of the story, but unfortunately, events transpired to set in motion the tragic attacks that have been happening."
Pausing, he looked at Aramis as he said, "Unfortunately, the sister-in-law loved her brother very much, despite his treatment of his wife. Evidently, her brother treated her with the love and kindness that he never gave to his wife. When her other brother came to visit from the family's home in southern France a week later, not wanting Antoine's memory to be "stained"and knowing that this brother hadn't been around since before Antoine's marriage , she told him that Aramis, despite what he might hear from anyone else, was the one who had tormented her sister-in-law. She said that when her brother had tried to intervene, Aramis had cold-bloodedly shot him. She told him she had found Antoine and taken him to her own house to nurse him, but that he had died in agony a day later. Lysette had gone out to get some food supplies when her brother-in-law had come, so heard nothing of this account of the affair.
There was complete silence in the room when Treville paused. Then, Athos spoke. "Bernard was the dead man's brother, I assume."
Nodding, Treville continued. "It seems, from the little information we have been able to obtain, that Bernard's family have had a long trail of violence, including assaults, murder, theft and even a brief period of banditry.
Someone in the village who had befriended Lysette's sister-in-law, told my men the woman was no stranger to violence herself. She once bragged to her about killing her dog in a rage at a mess he had made. No one, however, had ever seen Antoine raise a finger to his wife, as he must have been afraid of damaging his reputation in the village."
"Bad blood," Porthos murmured. Treville replied, "Indeed."
"At least, Bernard is now dead, so the trouble is over," Trevilled said. "You four get some more rest today. That's an order. Tomorrow, you are back on duty."
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Philippe had his plan all in order. He just needed his victim-or victims-he didn't care if he killed one or all of the Musketeers. He would finally have satisfaction, and no one would even suspect him. They all thought that with Bernard dead, it was all over. They would find out very soon how wrong they were. Then, he could go back to waiting for his father to 'turn up h is toes' so that he, Philippe, could finally receive the title, estates and wealth that were his due.
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The next day at muster, Treville assigned them to palace duty, then added, "but also with a brief investigation of a garden house at the edge of the palace grounds. Louis is very upset that things have been disappearing from it at a high rate: seeds, equipment, even trellises are being taken. He finally called us in when Anne's prize golden rose seeds disappeared yesterday, even with a guard patrolling the area. I promised him we would put an end to the theft. Dismissed!"
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Later, heading for the palace, Porthos grumbled, "Seed patrol! We're coming down in the world! Why doesn't Louis have all his gardeners carry a pistol or knife? How dangerous can this thief be?"
"Now, now, Porthos," Aramis said good-naturedly. He was in high spirits to be feeling back to normal, and couldn't pass up the opportunity to tease his friend. "The king asked for our assistance. This garden thief might be highly dangerous if he is deprived of his seed bounty!"
This outrageous comment caused Porthos to chuckle, which turned into a belly laugh which spurred Athos and d'Artagnan to laughing, as well.
The mood lightened, they continued on, enjoying each other's company and a very light duty for the day.
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Sorry this chapter was so short-busy, busy week for me. We are almost at the end of our story. Just one, or possibly two chapters left. Thanks so much for reading!
