Five minutes later, when she came back to the corridor, she found no signs of the ladder.
What had happened to it?
If Julien had been out of the house she would not have minded the danger in the least.
But supposing her husband were to see the ladder just now, the incident might be awful.
Madame de Renal ran all over the house.
Madame de Renal finally discovered the ladder under the roof where the servant had carried it and even hid it.
"What does it matter what happens in twenty-four hours," she thought, "when Julien will be gone?"
She had a vague idea that she ought to take leave of life but what mattered her duty?
He was restored to her after a separation which she had thought eternal.
She was seeing him again and the efforts he had made to reach her showed the extent of his love.
"What shall I say to my husband," she said to him. "If the servant tells him he found this ladder?"
She was pensive for a moment.
"They will need twenty-four hours to discover the peasant who sold it to you." And she threw herself into Julien's arms and clasped him convulsively.
"Oh, if I could only die like this," she cried covering him with kisses.
"But you mustn't die of starvation," she said with a smile.
"Come, I will first hide you in Madame Derville's room which is always locked."
She went and watched at the other end of the corridor and Julien ran in.
"Mind you don't try and open if any one knocks," she said as she locked him in. "Anyway it would only be a frolic of the children as they play together."
"Get them to come into the garden under the window," said Julien, "so that I may have the pleasure of seeing them. Make them speak."
"Yes, yes," cried Madame de Renal to him as she went away.
She soon returned with oranges, biscuits and a bottle of Malaga wine. She had not been able to steal any bread.
"What is your husband doing?" said Julien.
"He is writing out the figures of the bargains he is going to make with the peasants."
But eight o'clock had struck and they were making a lot of noise in the house.
If Madame de Renal failed to put in an appearance, they would look for her all over the house.
She was obliged to leave him.
Soon she came back, in defiance of all prudence, bringing him a cup of coffee. She was frightened lest he should die of starvation.
She managed after breakfast to bring the children under the window of Madame Derville's room.
He thought they had grown a great deal, but they had begun to look common, or else his ideas had changed.
Madame de Renal spoke to them about Julien.
The elder answered in an affectionate tone and regretted his old tutor, but he found that the younger children had almost forgotten him.
M. de Renal did not go out that morning; he was going up and downstairs incessantly engaged in bargaining with some peasants to whom he was selling potatoes.
Madame de Renal did not have an instant to give to her prisoner until dinner-time.
When the bell had been rung and dinner had been served, it occurred to her to steal a plate of warm soup for him.
As she noiselessly approached the door of the room which he occupied, she found herself face to face with the servant who had hid the ladder in the morning.
At the time he too was going noiselessly along the corridor, as though listening for something.
The servant took himself off in some confusion.
Madame de Renal boldly entered Julien's room.
The news of this encounter made him shudder.
"You are frightened," she said to him, "but I would brave all the dangers in the world without flinching.
There is only one thing I fear, and that is the moment when I shall be alone after you have left," and she left him and ran downstairs.
"Ah," thought Julien ecstatically, "remorse is the only danger which this sublime soul is afraid of."
At last evening came.
Monsieur de Renal went to the Casino.
His wife had given out that she was suffering from an awful headache. She went to her room, hastened to dismiss Elisa and quickly got up in order to let Julien out.
He was literally starving.
Madame de Renal went to the pantry to fetch some bread.
Julien heard a loud cry.
Madame de Renal came back and told him that when she went to the dark pantry and got near the cupboard where they kept the bread, she had touched a woman's arm as she stretched out her hand.
It was Elisa who had uttered the cry Julien had heard.