Hortense versuchte am Leben zu bleiben, nur um Louis Napoleon zu retten.
Hortense writes:
The palace I lived in, which belonged to my nephew, is located by the sea. The waves often came up to the room which I was inhabiting.
From there I could see the whole harbor, and count the few poorly maintained boats there that were at the disposal of the unfortunates who were going to need to flee.
I felt what dangers would be faced by those who would expose themselves on such frail boats. How, moreover, could we hope to avoid Austrian ships?
Well, maybe I was going to find myself forced to face these dangers; for, the government having taken no precaution against the entry of the Austrians, any defense was impossible; and by the Furlo road, if I delayed any longer, they could arrive before me at Foligno.
I was all the more afraid of meeting them, since my son, General Zucchi and the Modenese, were the only ones excepted from an amnesty that was proclaimed when entering papal territory.
Foreigners who had taken sides in the rebellion were to be seized and treated according to the full strictness of the law.
I leave it to the reader to understand the extent my anxiety, and what painful uncertainty diverted my pain.
So there could be no wavering; one day, an instant of delay could be fatal.
I had to overcome my weakness and embark on this journey, which I had imagined with so much courage to save my two children, alas! this trip which I should not abandon, since I still had a child.
My passport included two young people. To inspire no suspicion, I had to find someone who could pass for my second son.
The young Marquis Zappi was compromised more than any other. Newly married to the daughter of Prince Poniatowski, he had been chosen to carry dispatches from the government of Bologna to Paris.
He was still hoping for help from France, and he did not know how to get there.
I had him called, and I said to him: "If you have confidence in me, I will soon put you in a position to fulfill your mission," He consented to let himself be led without even knowing my plans, for I kept them for myself alone, and I did not know myself. I spent the day making all my arrangements for the next day.
One should not forget either the armed forces which were all over the road, nor the most childish details specific to traveling in disguise; and, since my arrangements had been made for a long time, it was only my extreme weakness which could be an obstacle, because I found it difficult to stand up.
But we arranged a bed in my carriage; and besides, I didn't think of myself.
Saving my son had become my only occupation; I could die afterwards.
