The king could scarcely restrain his fury.
The heart of Earl Douglas leaped with satisfaction and
gratification. "A lucky thing that Jane has no suspicion of our
presence," thought he--"otherwise she would have been less
unrestrained and ardent, and the king's ear would have imbibed less
poison."
Lady Jane thought not at all of her father; she scarcely remembered
that this very night would destroy her hated rival the queen.
Henry Howard had called her his Geraldine only. Jane had entirely
forgot that it was not she to whom her lover had given this name.
But he himself finally reminded her of it.
"Do you know, Geraldine," said Earl Surrey--and his voice, which had
been hitherto so cheerful and sprightly, was now sad--"do you know,
Geraldine, that I have had doubts of you? Oh, those were frightful,
horrible hours; and in the agony of my heart I came at last to the
resolution of going to the king and accusing myself of this love
that was consuming my heart. Oh, fear naught! I would not have
accused you. I would have even denied that love which you have so
often and with such transporting reality sworn to me. I would have
done it in order to see whether my Geraldine could at last gain
courage and strength to lover. He saw how he pressed her hands to
his lips; how he put his hand to her head to raise it from the
floor.
The king was speechless with rage. He could only lift his arm to
beckon the soldiers to approach; to point to Henry Howard, who had
not yet succeeded in raising the queen's head from the floor.
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