“Here it is.”

She drew it from her sleeve.  He stowed it in his pocket.

“You wish the general a good appetite, for me.  I am going out.  I will be back in two hours at the latest.  And, above all, don’t let the general know anything.  I am going to see one of my friends who lives in the Aptiekarski pereolek."* ____________________________________________________________
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* The little street of the apothecaries.
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“Depend on me, and get back quickly for love of me.  My blood clogs in my heart when you are not here, dear servant of God.”

She mounted to the general’s room and came down at least ten times to see if Rouletabille had not returned.  Two hours later he was around the villa, as he had promised.  She could not keep herself from running to meet him, for which she was scolded.

“Be calm.  Be calm.  Do you know what was in the phial?”

“No.”

“Arsenate of soda, enough to kill ten people.”

“Holy Mary!”

“Be quiet.  Go upstairs to the general.”

Feodor Feodorovitch was in charming humor.  It was his first good night since the death of the youth of Moscow.  He attributed it to his not having touched the narcotic and resolved, once more, to give up the narcotic, a resolve Rouletabille and Matrena encouraged.  During the conversation there was a knock at the door of Matrena’s chamber.  She ran to see who was there, and returned with Natacha, who wished to embrace her father.  Her face showed traces of fatigue.  Certainly she had not passed as good a night as her father, and the general reproached her for looking so downcast.

“It is true.  I had dreadful dreams.  But you, papa, did you sleep well?  Did you take your narcotic?”

“No, no, I have not touched a drop of my potion.”

“Yes, I see.  Oh, well, that is all right; that is very good.  Natural sleep must be coming back...”

Matrena, as though hypnotized by Rouletabille, had taken the glass from the table and ostentatiously carried it to the dressing-room to throw it out, and she delayed there to recover her self-possession.

Natacha continued: 

“You will see, papa, that you will be able to live just like everyone else finally.  The great thing was to clear away the police, the atrocious police; wasn’t it, Monsieur Rouletabille?”

“I have always said, for myself, that I am entirely of Mademoiselle Natacha’s mind.  You can be entirely reassured now, and I shall leave you feeling reassured.  Yes, I must think of getting my interviews done quickly, and departing.  Ah well, I can only say what I think.  Run things yourselves and you will not run any danger.  Besides, the general gets much better, and soon I shall see you all in France, I hope.  I must thank you now for your friendly hospitality.”