BORGO PRESS BOOKS BY ALEXANDRE DUMAS

      Anthony

      The Barricade at Clichy; or, The Fall of Napoleon

      Bathilda

      Caligula

      The Corsican Brothers (with Eugène Grangé & Xavier de Montépin)

      The Count of Monte Cristo, Part One: The Betrayal of Edmond Dantès

      The Count of Monte Cristo, Part Two: The Resurrection of Edmond Dantès

      The Count of Monte Cristo, Part Three: The Rise of Monte Cristo

      The Count of Monte Cristo, Part Four: The Revenge of Monte Cristo

      A Fairy Tale (with Adolphe de Leuven and Léon Lhérie)

      The Gold Thieves (with Countess Céleste de Chabrillan)

      Kean

      The Last of the Three Musketeers; or, The Prisoner of the Bastille (Musketeers #3)

      Lorenzino

      The Mohicans of Paris

      Napoléon Bonaparte

      Queen Margot

      Richard Darlington (with Prosper Dinaux)

      Sylvandire

      The Three Musketeers (Musketeers #1)

      The Three Musketeers—Twenty Years Later (Musketeers #2)

      The Tower of Nesle (with Frédéric Gaillardet)

      The Two Dianas (with Paul Meurice)

      Urbain Grandier and the Devils of Loudon

      The Venetian

      The Whites and the Blues

      The Widow’s Husband; and, Porthos in Search of an Outfit

      Young Louix XIV

      Related Dramas:

      The Queen’s Necklace, by Pierre Decourcelle

      The Seed of the Musketeers, by Paul de Kock & Guénée (Musketeers #5)

      The San Felice, by Maurice Drack

      The Son of Porthos the Musketeer, by Émile Blavet (Musketeers #4)

      A Summer Night’s Dream, Adolphe de Leuven & Joseph-Bernard Rosier

      The Widow’s Husband; and, Porthos in Search of an Outfit: Two Dumasian Comedies, edited by Frank J. Morlock

      COPYRIGHT INFORMATION

      Copyright © 2001, 2012 by Frank J. Morlock

      Published by Wildside Press LLC

      www.wildsidebooks.com

      DEDICATION

      To my dear friend, Mala Belli,

       for many years of friendship.

      CAST OF CHARACTERS

      Tom Cooper

      Williams (25 years old)

      Max Fulton

      Doctor Ivans (50 years old)

      Paul (the Marquis)

      Joanne

      The Parisian

      Mobile

      Le Faucheux

      Melida

      Albert

      Mother Joseph

      Émeraude

      Louisa

      Jenny

      Catalin

      Patrick (30 years old)

      Robinson (60 years old, merchant)

      PROLOGUE

      A salon in Doctor Ivan’s home in Portsmouth.

      At rise, Louisa is alone, preparing.

      LOUISA

      (looking at the clock)

      Four o’clock. The offices close at 4:15. Mr. Williams will be here at 4:30.

      (rapping)

      Good, that’s the doctor knocking.

      (she goes to open. Knocking in the English manner—four or five rapid taps which increase)

      DOCTOR

      A man didn’t come here in my absence?

      LOUISA

      With a word from you, Doctor, allowing him to visit the house?

      DOCTOR

      Exactly.

      LOUISA

      Oh—sir—what’s he come to do here? He looked and inventoried all the furniture as if he were going to buy them.

      DOCTOR

      He came precisely for that. Did he speak to the ladies?

      LOUISA

      Only to Miss Émeraude.

      DOCTOR

      Fine. Where is he?

      LOUISA

      He must be in your office now.

      DOCTOR

      My poor furniture. Each of them brings back a memory.

      (Patrick enters and looks at him.)

      DOCTOR

      What are you doing here?

      PATRICK

      Me? Nothing, sir. I was coming in to help Miss Louisa prepare the tea. If you have orders for me—

      DOCTOR

      Have you prepared your accounts?

      PATRICK

      Then the Doctor is sending me away?

      DOCTOR

      On the contrary, it’s you who are sending us away since you don’t wish to come with us.

      PATRICK

      You didn’t give me time to think it over, sir.

      DOCTOR

      (low to Louisa)

      Are they busy packing?

      LOUISA

      The ladies have done nothing else all day.

      DOCTOR

      And with what mood?

      LOUISA

      Miss Melida was sad; Miss Émeraude was joyful.

      DOCTOR

      Poor Melida—but it has to be done. I’m going to my office, if the ladies ask after me, you will say I’ve returned but that I am busy.

      LOUISA

      Yes, doctor.

      (He leaves, sighing.)

      PATRICK

      Ah—then—so it’s decided—completely decided?

      LOUISA

      What?

      PATRICK

      The departure.

      LOUISA

      You can see plainly since the Doctor told you to deliver your accounts to him.

      PATRICK

      Well—and you?

      LOUISA

      And me—what?

      PATRICK