was more at ease than she had been.
“What is that?” she cried, all at once.
“My dear!” said her father, stopping in his story, and laying his
hand on hers, “command yourself. What a disordered state you
are in! The least thingnothingstartles you! You, your father’s
daughter!”
“I thought, my father,” said Lucie, excusing herself. with a pale
face and in a faltering voice, “that I heard strange feet upon the
stairs.”
“My love, the staircase is as still as Death.”
As he said the word, a blow was struck upon the door.
“Oh father, father. What can this be! Hide Charles. Save him!”
“My child,” said the Doctor, rising, and laying his hand upon
her shoulder, “I have saved him. What weakness is this, my dear!
Let me go to the door.”
He took the lamp in his hand, crossed the two intervening outer
rooms, and opened it. A rude clattering of feet over the floor, and
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four rough men in red caps, armed with sabres and pistols,
entered the room.
“The Citizen Evremonde, called Darnay,” said the first.
“Who seeks him?” answered Darnay.
“I seek him. We seek him. I know you, Evremonde; I saw you
before the Tribunal today. You are again the prisoner of the
Republic.”
The four surrounded him where he stood with his wife and
child clinging to him.
“Tell me how and why I am again a prisoner?”
“It is enough that you return straight to the Conciergerie, and
will know tomorrow. You are summoned for tomorrow.”
Dr. Manette, whom this visitation had so turned into stone, that
he stood with the lamp in his hand, as if he were a statue made to
hold it, moved after these words were spoken, put the lamp down,
and confronting the speaker, and taking him, not ungently, by the
loose front of his red woollen shirt, said:
“You know him, you have said. Do you know me?”
“Yes, I know you, Citizen Doctor.”
“We all know you, Citizen Doctor,” said the other three.
He looked abstractedly from one to another, and said, in a
lower voice, after a pause:
“Will you answer this question to me then? How does this
happen?”
“Citizen Doctor,” said the first, reluctantly, “he has been
denounced to the Section of Saint Antoine. This citizen,” pointing
out the second who had entered, “is from Saint Antoine.”
The citizen here indicated nodded his head, and added:
“He is accused by Saint Antoine.”
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“Of what?” asked the Doctor.
“Citizen Doctor,” said the first, with his former reluctance, “ask