CHAPTER XIV
Saveria was a long time away, and when she at last reappeared, carryinga letter, and followed by little Chilina, rubbing her eyes, andevidently just waked out of her beauty sleep, Orso was wound up to thehighest possible pitch of impatience.
"Chili," said Orso, "what are you doing here at this hour?"
"The signorina sent for me," replied Chilina.
"What the devil does she want with her?" thought Orso to himself. But hewas in a hurry to open Miss Lydia's letter, and while he was reading itChilina went upstairs to his sister's room.
"My father, dear sir, has not been well," Miss Nevil wrote, "and he isso indolent, besides, that I am obliged to act as his secretary. Youremember that, instead of admiring the landscape with you and me theother day, he got his feet wet on the sea-shore--and in your delightfulisland, that is quite enough to give one a fever! I can see the face youare making! No doubt you are feeling for your dagger. But I will hopeyou have none now. Well, my father had a little fever, and I had a greatfright. The prefect, whom I persist in thinking very pleasant, sent usa doctor, also a very pleasant man, who got us over our trouble in twodays. There has been no return of the attack, and my father would liketo begin to shoot again. But I have forbidden that. How did you findmatters in your mountain home? Is your North Tower still in its oldplace? Are there any ghosts about it? I ask all these questions becausemy father remembers you have promised him buck and boar and moufflon--isthat the right name for those strange creatures? We intend to crave yourhospitality on our way to Bastia, where we are to embark, and I trustthe della Rebbia Castle, which you declare is so old and tumble-down,will not fall in upon our heads! Though the prefect is so pleasant thatsubjects of conversation are never lacking to us--I flatter myself, bythe way, that I have turned his head--we have been talking about yourworshipful self. The legal people at Bastia have sent him certainconfessions, made by a rascal they have under lock and key, which arecalculated to destroy your last remaining suspicions. The enmity whichsometimes alarmed me for you must therefore end at once. You have noidea what a pleasure this has been to me! When you started hence withthe fair _voceratrice_, with your gun in hand, and your brow lowering,you struck me as being more Corsican than ever--too Corsican indeed!_Basta!_ I write you this long letter because I am dull. The prefect,alas! is going away. We will send you a message when we start for yourmountains, and I shall take the liberty of writing to Signorina Colombato ask her to give me a _bruccio, ma solenne_! Meanwhile, give hermy love. I use her dagger a great deal to cut the leaves of a novel Ibrought with me. But the doughty steel revolts against such usage, andtears my book for me, after a most pitiful fashion. Farewell, sir! Myfather sends you 'his best love.' Listen to what the prefect says. Heis a sensible man, and is turning out of his way, I believe, on youraccount. He is going to lay a foundation-stone at Corte. I should fancythe ceremony will be very imposing, and I am very sorry not to see it.A gentleman in an embroidered coat and silk stockings and a white scarf,wielding a trowel--and a speech! And at the end of the performancemanifold and reiterated shouts of 'God save the King.' I say again, sir,it will make you very vain to think I have written you four whole pages,and on that account I give you leave to write me a very long letter. Bythe way, I think it very odd of you not to have let me hear of your safearrival at the Castle of Pietranera!
"LYDIA.
"P.S.--I beg you will listen to the prefect, and do as he bids you. Wehave agreed that this is the course you should pursue, and I shall bevery glad if you do it."
Orso read the letter three or four times over, making endless mentalcomments each time as he read. Then he wrote a long answer, which hesent by Saveria's hand to a man in the village, who was to go down toAjaccio the very next day. Already he had almost dismissed the idea ofdiscussing his grievance, true or false, against the Barricini, withhis sister. Miss Lydia's letter had cast a rose-coloured tint overeverything about him. He felt neither hatred nor suspicion now. Hewaited some time for his sister to come down, and finding she did notreappear, he went to bed, with a lighter heart than he had carriedfor many a day. Colomba, having dismissed Chilina with some secretinstructions, spent the greater part of the night in reading oldpapers. A little before daybreak a few tiny pebbles rattled against thewindow-pane. At the signal, she went down to the garden, opened a backdoor, and conducted two very rough men into her house. Her first carewas to bring them into the kitchen and give them food. My readers willshortly learn who these men were.