Dennis Wheatley - The Sultan's Daughter

'Why Sieyes? ' Roger asked. 'He is timid, and clever only at saving his own skin. He would run a mile rather than take any decisive action. It surprises me that you should choose such a weak tool for your business.'

Talleyrand smiled. 'Dear friend, you have yet quite a lot to learn. The majority of successful revolutions are made not from without, but from within. However impracticable Sieyds's ideas may be, he has persuaded nearly everybody that he has long had a Utopian Constitution in his pocket. Being eaten up with vanity as he is, it was a certainty that, as soon as he was given power, he would not be able to resist the itch to foist his unwieldy child upon the nation. What is more, believing him to be a wizard, the public would support him in any steps he took to do so.

'The first step was to hack away the dead wood in the Directory. By the bloodless coup d'etat of Prairial we got rid of three of them; but unfortunately things did not go quite as well as we had hoped. The Deputies landed us with Gohier, Moulins and Roger Ducos. The first two may give us some trouble; but the situation was at least improved by the inclusion of Ducos, because he is another trimmer and will follow Sieyes's lead in everything.

'By then, Sieyes was burning to give birth to his ponderous brain-child, but he at least has sufficient sense to realize that for that business he needs a capable midwife. To quote his own words, "What the nation needs is a brain and a sword." He, of course, was to be the brain; but who the sword?

'His first thought was of young Joubert. A good soldier and a sensible man; but he had never directed a victorious campaign, so it was doubtful if the Army could be counted on to support him. It was in the hope that he would win for himself suitable laurels that we sent him to supersede Moreau in Italy. But, as you know, he met only with defeat.and was killed at Novi.

'Sieyes's next choice was Moreau. His brow was already heavy with laurels won on the Rhine and elsewhere. His popularity as a General is beyond question; but he is no politician. He proved as timid about taking any action that might lead to his being outlawed as Sieyes is himself. When the news arrived of Bonaparte's having landed at Frejus, Moreau was with Sieyes and he exclaimed with relief, ''Here is your man! "'

Roger nodded and asked, 'How are they getting on together? '

Talleyrand threw up his hands and raised his eyes to heaven. 'Getting on! They have not yet even met. Between them they are driving me to distraction. The two of them are behaving like two old dowagers whose arms have the same number of quarterings. Each considers it to be beneath his dignity to be the first to call upon the other.'

'1 no longer wonder, then, that I found our little man in such a state of uncertainty when I spoke to him about Fouche. He even talked about going off to take command of the Army in Italy; although I feel sure he does not mean to.'

'No, he will not do that. At the moment he is angling to have himself made a Director.'

'Since he is only thirty, and the lowest age at which one can qualify is forty, he would first have to get passed an amendment to the Constitution.'

'Exactly, and his chances of doing that are negligible. The Jacobins would oppose it tooth and nail; and so would Gohier and Moulins. They would never agree to have him as one of them.'

'Then it seems things have come to a stalemate.'

'Yes. Four precious days have already been lost, and his refusal to meet either Sieyes or Fouche is deplorable. Somehow I must bring him and Sieyes together. In the meantime, I pray you do your utmost to nurse Fouche and prevent him from getting the idea that he has been cold-shouldered.'

'I wrote to him yesterday and took a gamble on saying that " our friend was eager to meet him ", etc., then asked on what days next week he would be free to take breakfast in some place where the meeting was unlikely to be observed and reported.'

'Good! Good! Somehow we will get Bonaparte there, even if we have to drag him by the coat-tails.'

* Ah, but where? I can think of only one suitable place, if it is available. Have you still your little house out at Passy? '

Talleyrand smiled, 'Why, yes. The Velots still look after it for me and occasionally I use it as a rendezvous to ascertain the colour of some pretty creature's garters. It is an admirable choice. You have only to let me know the day and I will arrange matters. Within recent months, Fouche and I have become upon quite tolerable terms and he will be more inclined to come in with us when he realizes that I am giving Bonaparte my support. As host, I can serve as the oil between the wheels; but, later, you and I must leave them alone together.'

'So be it then. I only pray that our little man will not bring about his own ruin by too lengthy a hesitation. Fouche feared that, if he failed to act promptly, he might be denounced in the Assembly as a conspirator, and that would prove the end of him.'

'That is my own fear, but I have taken a precaution against it. Today, unless matters go very wrong, as an honour to the General his brother Lucien is to be elected President for the month of the Five Hundred. He is a most revolting young firebrand, but he has a good head on his shoulders and is devoted to his brother. For his term as President we can count on him to quash any measure likely to thwart the ambitions of our formidable nursling.'

When they had finished breakfast, Talleyrand gave Roger a lift to his tailor's then drove on to Bonaparte's. After trying on his new uniforms, Roger followed him there. By then Talleyrand had left, but there were half a dozen officers in the drawing room, gathered round the General, among them Admiral Bruix who, since Breuy's death, had been the senior Commander in the French Navy. Having talked for a while with some of those present, Roger slipped away to the little cabinet where, as he expected, he found Bourrienne at work.

He confided to his old friend the situation regarding Fouche and asked his help, but the Chef de Cabinet shook his head. '1 do not feel that it is for me to attempt to influence our master in these matters. Talleyrand has been at him this morning urging him to call on Sieyes, and he has made a half-promise to do so; but I doubt if any good will come of it. The temperaments of the two men are so utterly at variance. If he does ally himself with one of the Directors it is much more likely to be his old patron, Barras. Although he despises him they have much more in common.'

'Including Josephine,' remarked Roger with a smile.

Bourrienne gave him a reproving look. ' Mon vieux, you should not say such things. What is past is past.'

'But is it? Rumour says that, before our return, she was from time to time still being kind to him for old acquaintance's sake; although Gohier appears to have been her latest interest.'

'You would be more correct in saying that Gohier is in love with her and that, by encouraging him without going too far, she is preventing him from joining her husband's enemies.'

'Bless you, Bourrienne, for a dear, kindly fellow,' Roger laughed. 'All I pray is that she will be discreet. Our little man is in no mood to stand for further infidelities, and she is so good-hearted a creature it would be a tragedy if some scheming harridan were put in her place.'

The next morning Roger witnessed a fine flare-up in the Bona-partes' drawing room. The General had been prevailed upon by Talleyrand and had sent an aide-de-camp to Sieyes to say that he proposed to call on him the following morning. Evidently the inordinately vain Sieyes considered himself insulted because Bonaparte had already been a week in Paris without troubling to present himself officially to him as one of the heads of the Government; so he had sent back a message saying that the hour proposed would be inconvenient.