CHAPTER XIX.
A NIGHT RIDE.
WHEN Jean del' Peyra with his father and escort arrived at the pointopposite the house of the ferryman on the Dordogne he shouted for theboat.
Night had set in, but the moon would rise in an hour; in the meanwhilesome light lingered over the sunken sun, and the stars were shiningfaintly.
The river gliding on in rapid descent, but without rush and coil,reflected the light above. It was as though a heaven of sparks seenthrough tears lay at the feet of Jean as he stood and waited in vain forthe ferry.
He was vexed at the delay. Time was speeding along. His father'scondition made him uneasy. The old man was singularly reticent andstolid; he expressed no satisfaction at his release.
After waiting and renewing his shouts to no purpose, one of the mensaid--
"There is a wedding in this ferryman's wife's family. I have a notionthat he may have gone to the merrymaking. It is not often that there arepassengers at night that need his punting-pole."
"We must try the ford," said the other.
"Where is that?" asked Jean, impatiently.
"Further down."
"Then lead to it immediately. We have already squandered too muchvaluable time."
The party now descended the river-bank till the spot was reached wherethe Dordogne could be traversed without danger by the horsemen.
The beasts went in. There had not been much rain of late, consequentlythe ford was passable. The water, however, surged up the leg when thehorses had entered to their girths.
Then, all at once, Ogier del' Peyra laughed.
"What is it, father?" asked Jean, startled.
"It is not a vision. I am not asleep!"
The old man had been oppressed with fear, lest what he went through wasa phantasm of the brain, and lest he should wake to the hideous realityof a living entombment. The swash of the cold water over his foot, uphis calf, above his knee, was the first thing that roused him to thecertainty that he was really free.
Without difficulty and danger the little party crossed the river; theyascended the flanks of the great plateau and passed at once into oakwoods. Thence, after a while, they emerged upon a bald track, wherethere was hardly any soil at all, and the whole region seemed to bestruck with perpetual hoar-frost. The hoe, even the foot turned upchalk-flakes. Nothing could grow on so barren a surface.
The moon rose and made the waste look colder, deader than under thestarlight.
Suddenly shouts were heard, and at the same moment before the littleparty rushed an old grey wolf. As he passed he turned to them with asnarl that showed his fangs gleaming as ivory in the moonlight. He didnot stop--he fled precipitately; and next moment from out of a dellrushed a troop of men armed with pikes, pitchforks, and cudgels,attended by a legion of farm-dogs yelping vigorously.
The little party drew up. The moon gleamed on the morions and the steelplates sewn on the buff jerkins, and black to westward on the whitecausse[8] lay the shadows of horses and men.
[8] The Causse, from Calx, is the chalk or limestone plateau.
A portion of those pursuing the wolf halted. "Haro! Haro!" shouted oneman. "Here are human wolves, the worst of all! Let us kill them beforewe run the other down."
In the clear moonlight they had seen the crosses of the _routiers_ onthe arms of the two men sent from Domme. In a moment the party wassurrounded, and the two freebooters to protect themselves drew theirswords.
Jean pushed forward. "My friends, do you not know me? We are the Del'Peyras, and my father is but just released from bondage. I am taking himhome."
"We will not hurt you, Messire Jean," said a peasant. "But these fellowswith you--they are beasts of prey. They have killed our men. Standaside, that we may knock them off their horses and then beat out theirbrains."
"You shall not do this."
"Why not? They are brigands, and not fit to live."
"They are under my protection."
The peasants were ill satisfied; having felt their power they had becomeimpatient of all restraint on it.
"Look here," said Jean, "my honour and my father's are engaged for thesemen. Do not force us to draw our swords on their behalf."
"How do you know but that they will fall on you?"
"They dare not," answered Jean.
"I would trust a wolf rather than one of these. Come on!" The lastaddress was to his fellows.
Then those who had halted turned and ran in the track of such as werepursuing the wolf.
What Jean del' Peyra had said was true enough. The two men attending himwould not dare to commit an act of treachery on the way to Ste. Soure.He and his father were safe till Noemi was restored.
Jean spoke to his father. The old man was silent as he rode; now heroused himself as from a trance to answer Jean.
"What did you say, my son?"
"Father, we must push on at a quicker pace."
"I cannot push on--I want to go to sleep."
"To sleep, father?"
"I am falling from my horse with fatigue. I must get off. I must liedown. I have not had my proper rest."
Jean was dismayed; time was slipping along, the moon describing her archin heaven; he must reach Le Peuch before daybreak, and now his fatherasked for a halt. It was true that he had allowed time for resting thehorses on the way, but how long would the old man require for hisrepose? The strain on his nerves, the horror of the darkness andexpectation of a lingering death in the vault, had been so great that areaction had set in, and he was unable to keep his eyes open.
"Father," said the young man, "you cannot tarry here on the open_causse_, we must get on, into the coppice, to a charcoal-burner'slodge. There is one at no great distance."
A few minutes later Jean looked at his father. The old man had let fallhis bridle, his head was sunk on his breast; in another moment he wouldhave dropped from his saddle.
The youth called to him, and Ogier started and said:
"I am coming--directly."
In another second he was again asleep.
It was needful to dismount and make Ogier walk. So alone could he bekept awake. Half a mile distant was the charcoal-burner's heap, and arude cabin of branches beside it.
One of the _routiers_ led Ogier's horse. The old man became angry andirritable at being forced to walk. He scolded his son, he complainedthat he was badly treated; in vain did Jean explain that he desired himto go on but a little way. The Seigneur stood still, and said he mustsit down--he could not, he would not proceed.
Then Jean poured the rest of his flask of spirit down Ogier's throat,and said peremptorily, "You shall come on, whether you will or no."
The old Seigneur obeyed, grumbled, and in a few minutes was at thecharcoal-burning station, and had flung himself on a bed of fern in thehut, and was asleep almost as soon as he had cast himself on thebracken.
The charcoal-burner recognised Jean del' Peyra and saluted himrespectfully, but looked askance at the two _routiers_.
"Have you seen or heard anything of the hunt?" asked the collier. "Mymate has gone with the rest after the wolf. You see that grey beast hasalready carried off three children. Yesterday it was Mascot's babe--andnow all the country is up; and they are going to run the wolf down.There is a ring formed round the _causse._They lured him with a deadsheep. It is to be trusted they will kill him."
Jean said a word or two in reply. He was very uneasy. The heaviness withwhich his father slept showed him that he was in no condition to beroused at the end of the hour and made to remount. Ogier's strength wasexhausted, and this was not to be wondered at, considering what he hadgone through.
Jean spoke to the collier, and explained to him that he proposed lettingthe old man remain where he was and sleep his full. He himself must rideon with his companions, and he would return in the morning for hisfather.
Meanwhile the _routiers_ had drawn aside and were conversing in a lowtone.
"What say you, Heliot?
The old fellow will not ride on."
"Then one of us must stay, Peyrot," answered the other, "and the otherproceed with the young one."
"Why not finish them at once?"
"You fool! We cannot--we must recover the demoiselle first."
"That is true--I will stay--you ride forward."
"It is one to me which I dispatch," said Heliot. "You can remain,Peyrot, and it is well for us that the Seigneur has broken down."
"Why so?"
"Because we should have found it difficult to lay hands on them at Ste.Soure or at Le Peuch, among their own people."
"There will be Amanieu and Roger."
"Yes--Amanieu and Roger; but all depends--if there be only women aboutthe thing will be easy enough, but if men be there in arms, I do not seehow we could do it."
"But now----"
"Exactly--now all is coming smooth to our hands," said Heliot. "For theyoung Seigneur must return hither to fetch his father--and on theCausse, here among the coppice, away from all habitations, we candispatch them easily."
"I will kill the old man at once--as soon as you have ridden on," saidPeyrot.
"As you like--but you cannot reckon on the collier. He is a big man. Ifyou kill him first, well and good; but if he be on the alert, and younote how suspiciously he looks at us, then he may escape and run andgive the alarm, so my sword will be prevented taking the fresher bloodof the young Del' Peyra."
"Then what would you have me do?"
"Remain here. Disarm the suspicions of the charcoal-burner. Keep nearthe Seigneur, especially in the morning. If he be awake, be at his side;if asleep, watch by his bed. The collier must attend to his charcoal.When I draw near with the demoiselle and Amanieu and Roger, and theyoung man, then cut him down and take his head. I will do the same tothe youth."
Presently the voice of Jean was heard summoning them to mount. Hisimpatience would not endure a longer delay.
Peyrot le Fort came up and said: "I am not going further."
"Not coming on? You must."
"I cannot; my horse is lame."
"Lame! I did not observe that as we rode along."
"You had no eyes save for your father."
"If lame, of course you must stay. We cannot--we dare not linger herelonger. Tarry with my father till we return."
Then Jean went into the booth of the charcoal-burner and looked at hissleeping father. Within was dark, and accidentally he touched the oldman's foot. At once Ogier started into a sitting posture, and cried out,"Yes, yes, Guillem! The fourth time--I shall not forget!"
Then he threw himself back, and was sound asleep again.