CHAPTER XXXIII
PLAYING CARDS WITH THE SHADES.
A cloudy sky hides the moon, and a cold wind, the omen of approachingDecember, whirls the dry leaves and dust in the narrow path leadingto the cemetery.
Under the gate, three forms are conversing in a low tone.
"Have you spoken to Elias?" asked a voice.
"No; you know he is very odd and discreet. But he ought to be withus. Don Crisostomo saved his life."
"I accepted the offer for the same reason," said the first voice. "DonCrisostomo is having my wife treated at a doctor's house in Manila. Ihave agreed to take charge of the convent in the attack, so that Ican settle my accounts with the curate."
"And we, we will have charge of the attack on the cuartel, so that wecan say to the members of the Guardia Civil that our father had sons."
"How many will there be of you?"
"Five! Five will be enough. Don Crisostomo's servant says that therewill be twenty in all."
"And if things don't turn out well?"
"St!" said one, and they all became silent.
In the semi-darkness, a form could be seen crawling along thefence. From time to time it stopped, as if to look behind.
And it did so not without reason. Behind, at some twenty paces,came another form. This one was taller and seemed to be darker thanthe first. Each time that the first stopped this second one woulddisappear as if the earth had swallowed it.
"They are following me," murmured the one ahead. "Is it a GuardiaCivil? Has the sacristan lied?"
"It appears that the appointment is here," said the second, in a lowvoice. "They are up to something bad, when the two brothers hide itfrom me."
The first form finally arrived at the gate of the cemetery. The threewho were already there advanced.
"Is it you?"
"Is it you?"
"Let us separate. Some one is following me. To-morrow we will havethe arms and to-morrow night will be our time. The cry is 'Viva DonCrisostomo!' Begone!"
The three persons disappeared behind the wall. The recent arrivalhid himself in the hollow of the gate and waited silently.
"Let's see who is following me!" he murmured.
The second person came along very cautiously, and stopped to lookaround.
"I have arrived late!" said he in a half intelligible voice. "Butperhaps they will return."
And, as a fine rain began to fall and threatened to continue, he tookrefuge under the gate. Naturally, he met the other.
"Ah! who are you?" asked the one who had just come up, in a manlyvoice.
"And who are you?" replied the other tranquilly.
There was a moment's pause. Each tried to recognize the other by thetone of his voice and to distinguish the other's features.
"What are you waiting here for?" asked the one with the heavy voice.
"Till the clock strikes eight, so as to have a game of cards withthe dead. I want to win some money to-night," replied the other,in an ordinary tone. "And you: what do you come here for?"
"A--a--for the same thing."
"Well! I am glad. So I will not be without a companion. I have broughtsome cards. At the first stroke of the bell, I put down the albur(the first two cards put on the board in monte). At the second stroke,I put down the gallo (the second pair). The cards which move after Ihave put them down, are those which the dead choose for themselves. Didyou also bring some cards?"
"No."
"Then?"
"It is simple. Just as you act as 'banker' for them, so I hope thatthey will 'bank' for me." (In monte the banker deals the cards andbets that one of the cards in either the albur or gallo is turned upby dealing off the pack, before the card chosen by the other personis turned up. A banker can play against two others.)
"And if the shades do not care to 'bank'?"
"What can be done? The game is not obligatory upon the dead."
There was a moment's silence.
"Did you come armed? What if you have to fight with the shades ofthe dead?"
"I'll use my fists," replied the taller of the two.
"Ah! The devil! Now, I remember! The dead do not bet when there ismore than one live person around. There are two of us."
"Is that true? Well, I don't want to go away."
"Nor I. I need some money," replied the smaller one. "But let us dothis: We will decide by the cards which one shall go away."
"All right!" replied the other, showing a certain amount ofdispleasure.
"Then let us go in. Have you any matches?"
They entered the cemetery and in the obscurity they searched for aplace where they might decide the question with the cards. They soonfound a niche upon which they sat down. The shorter one took fromhis hat some playing cards and the other lighted a match.
Each one looked at the other in the light which the match made, but,judging from the expression on their faces, they did not recognizeeach other. However, we can recognize in the taller one, the one withthe manly voice, Elias; and in the smaller one, Lucas, with the scaron his cheek.
"Cut the cards!" said the latter, without ceasing to look at the other.
He pushed aside some bones which were found on the niche and turned upan ace and a jack for the albur. Elias lighted one match after another.
"On the jack!" said he and, in order to show which of the cards hewas betting on, he placed upon it a piece of vertebrae.
"I deal!" said Lucas and, after turning up four or five cards, anace came up.
"You have lost," he added. "Now leave me alone so that I may winsome money."
Elias, without saying a word, disappeared in the darkness.
Some minutes afterward, the clock in the church struck eight and thebell announced the hour of prayer. But Lucas did not invite anybodyto play with him. He did not call out the shades, as superstitiondemanded. Instead, he uncovered his head, murmured some prayers andcrossed himself with the same fervor as the chief of the Brotherhoodof the Most Sacred Rosary would have done at that moment.
The drizzling rain continued all night. At nine o'clock the streetswere dark and lonely. The little cocoanut oil lanterns, which eachcitizen had to hang out in front of his house gave light scarcely ameter around. It seemed as though they had been lighted so one mightsee the darkness.
Two Civil Guards were walking from one side of the street to theother near the church.
"It is cold," said one in Tagalog with a Visayan accent. "We aren'tcatching any sacristans. There is nobody to clean out the alferez's henyard and we ought to catch some sacristan and make him do it. Sincethat one was killed, they have taken warning. I am getting tiredof this."
"So am I," replied the other. "Nobody commits any robbery; no onedisturbs the peace; but, thank God, they say that Elias is in town. Thealferez says that the one who catches him will be free from whippingsfor three months."
"Ah! Do you know his identification marks?" asked the Visayan.
"I certainly do! Stature, tall, according to the alferez's description;ordinary, according to the description of Father Damaso; color,brunette; eyes, black; nose, regular; mouth, regular; beard, none;hair, black."
"Ah! And particular marks?"
"Camisa, black; pantaloons, black; a wood-cutter----"
"Ah! He will not escape. I think I see him already."
"I don't confuse him with anybody else, although you might think so."
Both soldiers continued their beats.
By the light of the lantern two forms could again be seen, onefollowing the other cautiously. A forcible "Quien vive?" stops themboth. The first one replied "Espana," in a trembling voice.
The two soldiers drag him along and bring him up to the light,to recognize him. It was Lucas, but the soldiers were in doubt andquestioned each other with a glance.
"The alferez said nothing about his having a scar," said the Visayanin a low voice. "Where are you going?"
"To order a mass for to-morrow."
"Have you not seen Elias?"
"
I do not know him, senor," replied Lucas.
"You dunce! I am not asking if you know him. Nor do we know him. Iam asking you if you have seen him."
"No, senor."
"Listen closely. I will give you his description. Stature, at timestall, at times regular; skin and eyes, black; all the others areregular," said the Visayan. "Do you know him now?"
"No, senor," replied Lucas, frightened.
"Then, sulung! (Go along). You brute! You ass!" And they gave hima shove.
"Do you know why Elias is tall, according to the alferez, and why heis short, according to the curate?" asked the Tagalog of the other.
"No."
"Because the alferez was stuck in a mud hole when he observed him,and the curate was on foot when he saw him."
"That's right!" exclaimed the Visayan. "You are bright. Why are youa Guardia Civil?"
"I haven't been always. I was a smuggler at one time," replied theTagalog boastingly.
But another form attracted their attention. They called out "QuienVive?" and brought him up to the light. This time it was Elias himself.
"Where are you going?"
"I am pursuing, senor, a man who has whipped and threatened mybrother. He has a scar on his face and his name is Elias----"
"Ha?" exclaimed the two, and looked at each other frightened.
And at once they started on a run toward the church, where a fewminutes before Lucas had disappeared.