The Man In The Iron Mask

Fouquet’s carriage races to the Bastille. Along the way, Fouquet sends orders by messenger to D’Artagnan and other men he considers faithful to the true king. He sends these letters as a kind of insurance; by the time any ill might befall him at the Bastille, the men will have opened their letters and learned the truth. However, if he remains free, he will be back in time to reclaim the letters before they are opened. Fouquet arrives at the Bastille and fights a couple of guards to get inside the gate. Baisemeaux confirms that Aramis took “Marchiali” from his cell one night and then brought him back the next, but he then denies “Marchiali” was ever released. Fouquet grows tired of his games and begins to write out orders for Aramis’s and Baisemeaux’s arrests. Baisemeaux, at last, agrees to take him up to the cell. As Fouquet unlocks the doors, he hears King Louis shouting, “It was Monsieur Fouquet who brought me here!” and “Death to the traitor Fouquet!” (203).