CHAPTER IX.
THE WINDING STAIRS
I left the table early, and went to my room. I tore two strips from thesheet of my bed, and wrapped them around my boots so as to cover thesoles and deaden my footsteps. Slowly the night came, with stars and amoon well toward the full. But we could keep in shadow while about thechateau, and the light would aid our travelling later. At half-past teno'clock, the house seemed so still I thought the Count must have gone tobed before his usual time. I stole noiselessly from my room, feeling myway; and partly down the stairs. But when I got to the head of the lowerflight, I saw that the hall was still lighted. I peered over therailing. The Count and the Captain were alone, except for two knaves whosat asleep on their bench at the lower end of the hall. The Countlounged limply back in his great chair at the head of the table,unsteadily holding a glass of wine; and the Captain leaned forward onthe board, narrowly regarding the Count. Both were well gone in wine,the Count apparently the more so. There was a look of mental torment onthe Count's face.
"Yes, I know, I know," he said, wincing at his own words as if theypierced him. "There was opportunity enough with that De Merri. I wasblind then. And with this new puppy! Women and lovers have the ingenuityof devils in devising opportunities. And they both admit their interviewin the garden. But that he could have his way so soon--is that entirelyprobable?"
He looked at the Captain almost beseechingly, as if for a spark of hope.
The Captain spoke with the calm certainty of wisdom gained through aworld of experience:
"Young blood is quickly stirred. Young lips are quickly drawn to oneanother. Young arms are quick to reach out, and young bodies quick toyield to them."
The Count uttered a cry of pain and wrath, his eyes fixed as though uponthe very scene the Captain imagined.
"The wretches!" said the tortured Count, staggering to his feet. "And Iam the Count de Lavardin!"
"'THE WRETCHES!' SAID THE TORTURED COUNT, STAGGERING TOHIS FEET."]
"The greater nobleman you, the greater conquest for a young nobody toboast of. It is a fine thought for adventurous youth.--'A great lord,and a rich, but it is I, an unknown stripling, who really have possessedwhat he thinks his dearest treasure.'"
The Count gave a kind of agonized moan, and went lurching across thehall, spilling some wine from his glass. "And a man of my years, too!"he said, with an accent of self-pity.
"The older the husband, the merrier the laugh at his expense," said theCaptain.
The Count ground his teeth, and muttered to himself.
"It is always their boasting that betrays them," went on the Count."When I was young, they used to tell of a famous love affair between theBussy d'Amboise of that day and the Countess de Montsoreau, wife of theGrand-huntsman. It came out through Bussy's writing to the King'sbrother that he had stolen the hind of the Grand-huntsman. That is howthese young cocks always speak of their conquests.
"Ah, I remember that. He did the right thing, that Montsoreau! He forcedhis false wife to make an appointment with Bussy, and when Bussy came,it was a dozen armed men who kept the appointment, and the gay loverdied hanging from a window. Yes, that Montsoreau!--but he should havekilled the woman too! The perfidious creatures! Mon dieu!--when Imarried her--when she took the vows--she was the picture of fidelity--Icould have staked my soul that she was true; that from duty alone shewas mine always, only mine!"
He lamented not as one hurt in his love, but as one outraged in hisright of possession and in his dignity and pride. And curiously enough,his last words caused a look of jealousy to pass across the face of theCaptain. This look, unnoticed by the Count, and speedily repressed, cameto me as a revelation. It seemed to betray a bitter envy of the Count'smere loveless and unloved right of possession; and it bespoke theresolve that, if the Captain might not have her smiles, not even herhusband might be content in his rights. Such men will give a woman todeath rather than to any other man. As in a flash, then, I saw hismotive in working upon the Count's insane jealousy. Better the Countshould kill her than that even the Count should possess her. I shudderedto think how near to murder the Count had been wrought up but a momentsince. At any time his impulse might pass the bounds. I now understoodMathilde's apprehensions, and saw the need for haste in removing theCountess far from the power of this madman and his malign instigator.
The Count, exhausted by his rush of feelings, drained his glass, andalmost immediately gave way to the sudden drowsiness which befallsdrinkers at a certain stage. He staggered to his seat, and fell back ina kind of daze, the Captain watching him with cold patience. Thinkingthey would soon be going to bed, I slipped back to my room.
A little after eleven, I went forth again. The hall was now dark, andits silence betokened desertion. I groped my way to the door. The keyturned more noisily than I should have wished, and there was a bolt toundo, which grated; but I heard no sound of alarm in the house. Istepped out to the court-yard, closing the door after me. The court-yardwas bathed in moonlight. Keeping close to the house, so as not to bevisible from any upper window, I gained the shadow of the wallseparating the two court-yards. As noiselessly as a cat, I followed thatwall to its gateway; entered the second court-yard, and saw that thedoor to the tower was open, a faint light coming from it. The toweritself, obstructing the moon's rays, threw its shadow across thepaving-stones. I stepped into that shadow, which was only partial; drewmy sword and dagger, and darted straight for the tower entrance,stopping just inside the doorway. By the light of a lantern hangingagainst the wall, I saw a kind of small vestibule, beyond which was aninner wall, and at one side of which was the beginning of a narrowspiral staircase, that ran up between walls until it wound out of sight.On a bench against the inner wall I have mentioned, sat a man, who roseat sight of me, with one hand grasping a sword, and with the other apike that was leaning against the bench.
He was a heavy, squat fellow, with short, thick legs and short, thickarms.
"I give you one chance for your life," said I quickly. "Help me toescape with your prisoner, and leave the Count's service for mine."
After a moment's astonishment, the man grunted derisively, and made alunge at my breast with his pike. I caught the pike with my left hand,still holding my dagger therein, and forced it downward. At the sametime I thrust with my rapier, but he parried with his own sword. Ithrust instantly again, and would have pinned him to the wall if he hadnot sprung aside. He was now with his back to the stairs, and neither ofus had let go the pike. His sword-point darted at me a second time, butI avoided, and thrust in return. Not quite ready to parry, he escaped byfalling back upon the narrow stone steps. Before I could attack, he wason his feet again, and on the second step. We still held to the pike,which troubled me much, both as an impediment to free sword-play and asdepriving me of the use of my dagger. I suddenly fell back, trying tojerk it from his grasp; but his grip was too firm. He jerked the pike inturn, and I let go, thinking the unexpected release might cause him afall.
He did not fall; but I pressed close with sword and dagger before hecould bring the pike to use, and he backed further up the stairs. Hecaught the pike nearer the point, that he might wield it better at closequarters; but the long handle made it an awkward weapon, by strikingagainst the wall, which continually curved behind him. We were sword tosword, and against my dagger he had his pike, but the dagger was thefreer weapon for defence though not so far-reaching for attack.
The man was very strong, but he had the shorter thrust and offered thebroader target. We continued at it, thrust and parry, give and take. Allthe time he retreated up the winding staircase, which was so narrow thatwe had little elbow room, and this was to his advantage as he neededless than I. Another thing soon came to his advantage: the stairs curvedout of the light cast by the lantern below, so that he backed intodarkness, yet I was still visible to him. I cannot tell by what sense Iknew where to meet his sword-point, yet certainly my dagger rang againstit each time it would have stung me out of the dark. As for his pike, Inow kept it busy enou
gh in meeting my own thrusts. Whether or not I wasdrawn by the knowledge that the Countess was above, I continued toattack so incessantly, and with such good reach, that my antagoniststill retreated upward. I followed him into the darkness; and then theadvantage was with me, as being slender.
Hitherto I had offered him my full front, but now I half turned my backto the wall, so that his blade might scarce find me at all, and that Imight stand less danger of being forced backward off my feet. Well, sowe prodded the darkness with our steel feelers in search of each other'sbodies on those narrow stairs, striking sparks from the stone wallswhich our weapons were bound to meet by reason of the continualcurvature.
At last the broad form of my adversary was suddenly thrown into faintlight by a narrow window in the wall. I staked all upon one swiftthrust. It caught him full in the belly, and ran how far up his body Iknow not. With a cry he fell forward, and I was hard put to it to savemy sword and avoid going down with him. But I got myself and my swordfree, and went on up the stairs as fast as I could feel my way.
In a few moments I heard steps coming from above, and a rough voiceshouting down, "Ho, Gaspard, did you call? What the devil's up?" It wasthe other guard, who must have been asleep to have been deaf to theclash of our weapons, but whom his comrade's death-cry had roused. Itrusted that the walls of the tower had confined that death-cry from thechateau; fortunately, the narrow window was toward the open fields.
I stopped where I was. When the man's steps sounded a few feet from me,I said "Halt!" and, telling him his comrade was dead, proposed the termsI had offered the latter. There was a moment's silence: then a clickingsound, and finally a great flash of fiery light with a loud report, andthe smell of smoke. By good luck I had flattened myself against the wallbefore speaking, and the charge whizzed past me. Thinking the man mighthave another pistol in readiness, I stood still. But he turned and ranup the stairs. I stumbled after him.
Presently the stairway curved into light such as we had left at thebottom. The guard ran on in the light, and finally stepped forth to alanding no wider than the stairs; where there hung a lantern over athree-legged stool, beyond which was a door. At sight of this my heartbounded.
At the very edge of the landing the man turned and faced me, pointing asecond pistol. As the wheel moved, I dropped forward. The thing missedfire entirely, and, flinging it down with a curse, the man drew hissword and seized a pike that stood against the wall. I chargedrecklessly up the steps, bending my body to avoid the pike. It wentthrough my doublet, just under the left armpit. Ere he could disencumberit I pressed forward upon the landing. I turned his sword with mydagger, and thrust with my own sword under the pike, piercing his side.Only wounded, he leaped back, drawing the pike from my clothes. He aimedat me again with that weapon. In bending away from it, I fell on myside, but instantly turned upon my back.
The man moved to stand over me. I let go my sword, and caught the pikein my hand as it descended. He then tried to spit me with his sword, butI checked its point with the guard of my dagger. I thought I was near myend. He had only to draw up his sword for another downward thrust; butthere was a sudden faltering, or hesitation, in his movements, probablya blindness of his eyes, the effect of his wound. In that instant of hisuncertainty, I swung my dagger around and ran it through his leg. Hefell forward upon me, nearly driving the breath out of my body. Mydagger arm, extended as it had been, was fortunately free. I crooked myelbow, embraced my adversary, and sank the dagger deep into his back. Ifelt his quiver of death.
After I had rolled his body off me, and sheathed my sword and dagger, Itook out the key and unlocked the door. Inside the vaulted room ofstone, which was lighted by a candle, stood the Countess and Mathilde.
The Countess, beautiful in her pallor, and looking more angel than womanin the plain robe of blue that clothed her slight figure, met me with aface of mingled reproach, pity, and horror. Mathilde was in tears andutterly downcast. I could see at a glance how matters stood, and ere Ihad made two steps beyond the threshold, I stopped, abashed.
"Oh, Monsieur, the blood!" cried the Countess sadly, pointing to mydoublet.
"It is that of your two guards," I said. "I am not hurt."
"I am glad you are not hurt. But oh, why did you put this bloodshed uponyour soul?"
"To save you, Madame."
"Alas, I know. It is not for me to blame you--but could you think Iwould escape--leave the house of my husband--become a fugitive wife?"
I saw how firm she was in her resolution for all her fragility of body,and I scarce knew what to say.
"Madame, think! He is your husband, yes,--but your persecutor. Where youshould have protection, you receive--this." I waved my hand about herprison. "Where you should find safety, you are in mortal danger."
"I know all that, Monsieur,--have known it from the first. But shall Iplay the runaway on that account? Think what you propose--that I, awedded wife, shall fly from my husband's roof with a gentleman who isnot even of kin to me! Then indeed would my good name deserve tosuffer."
"But Madame, heaven knows, as I do, that you are the truest of wives."
"Then let me still deserve that title as my consolation, whatever I mayhave to endure."
"But to flee from such indignity as this--such slander--such peril ofdeath--"
"It is for me to bear these things," she interrupted, "if he to whom Ivowed myself in marriage inflicts them upon me. If they be wrongs, it isI who must suffer but not I who must answer to heaven for them! I may besinned against, but I will not sin. Though he fail in a husband's duty,I will not fail in a wife's. Do you not understand, Monsieur, it is notthe things done to us, but the things we do, that we are accountablefor?"
"But I can see no sin in your fleeing from the evils that beset youhere, Madame."
"Nay, even if it were not a violation of my marriage vow, it would havethe appearance of sin, and that we are to avoid. And it would be tothrow away my one hope, that my husband's heart may yet be softened, andhis eyes opened to my innocence."
"Alas! I trust it may turn out a true hope, Madame," said I sadly.
"Heaven has caused such things to occur before now," she replied. "Asfor you, Monsieur, I must never cease to thank you for your chivalrousintent, as I shall thank my good Mathilde for her devotion. And I willever pray for you. And now, if you would make my lot easier--if youwould remove one anxiety from my heart, and give me one solace--you willleave this chateau immediately. Save yourself, I beg. Monsieur: letthere be no more blood shed on my account, and that blood yours!Mathilde can let you out at the postern--she knows where the key ishidden. She tells me you have a horse at Montoire. Go, Monsieur--losenot another moment--I implore--nay, if you will recognize me as mistressof this house, I command."
I bowed low. She offered me her hand: I kissed it.
"It will not be necessary for Mathilde to come to the postern," said I."I know another way out of the chateau. Adieu, Madame!" It was all Icould manage to say without the breaking of my voice. I turned and leftthe room, closing the door that the Countess and Mathilde might bespared the sight of the body on the landing. I then, for a reason, tookthe key, leaving the door unlocked. I groped my way down the stairs,taking care not to trip over the body below. I crossed the court-yardswithout any care for secrecy, entered the hall, and sat down upon abench near the door.
When I had told the Countess I knew another way out of the chateau, Imeant only the front gateway. But I did not intend immediately to trythat way. I intended, for a purpose which had suddenly come into myhead, to wait in the hall till morning and be the first to greet theCount when he appeared.
The Bright Face of Danger Page 9
