CHAPTER XXII.
THE CASTELLAN.
LE GROS GUILLEM was pacing the stone-vaulted hall of the Castle ofDomme. It was a hall that ran the whole depth of the castle, from oneface to the other, and was lighted solely by large windows to the north,commanding the valley of the Dordogne. The room was vaulted, not ribbed;cradled with white stone, the walls were of stone, and the hall waspaved with stone--all of one whiteness. No tapestry covered the nakedsides, nor carpets clothed the floors, only some panelling of oak toman's height took off some of the chill of the walls, and straw waslittered on the floor. Of ornament there was none in the hall, unlessweapons and defensive armour might be so regarded. Even antlers andboars' heads were absent. The occupants of the castle had otheramusements than the chase.
"I must have thirty men more," said the Captain. "Let Heliot ride intothe Bretenoux country; he will get them there; and let that sulkyAmanieu, who is neither one of us nor against us, go to Gramat, on thebald and barren Causse, where nothing grows save lank and hungry men,there is always a supply of daredevils to be had for the asking. Offerwhat you will--we must make an attempt on Bergerac--and have the lootingof its fat merchants' houses. We will make a raid into Sarlat and putthe oily canons into the olive-press. There is plenty to be had for thetaking. I want men. I must have more men. I dare not leave Domme withouta thumb on it to hold it down; and there is that accursed eye of LaRoque watching unwinkingly. Fine times are coming. I hear that theEnglish are sending an army under the great Talbot. Let us dosomething--pick over the vineyard before he comes or the Englishmen willhave the biggest bunches."
One of the attendants came up to the Captain and informed him that therewas an old man desired to speak with him.
"What does he want? Where does he come from? I want no old men. Theyoung are those who can serve me. I have not here an almshouse forbedemen, but a training school for soldiers."
"He will not say what he wants--except only that he comes on matters ofextreme importance."
"Importance! importance!" repeated Le Gros Guillem irritably."Importance to him and not to me. What is he? a farmer? Some of my boyshave lifted an ox or carried off a daughter. I will not see him."
"Captain, he comes from La Roque."
"Then I will have nothing to do with him. I have no dealings with thepeople of La Roque. Run your pikes into his calves and make him skipdown the hill."
The attendant retired but returned shortly with a slip of paper, whichhe put into the Captain's hand. Guillem would have thrust it aside. "Ascribbling petitioner--worst of all! Does he look as if he had money?Can he be made to pay? If so we will put him in the mortar and poundhim."
With careless indifference Guillem opened the paper and read the lines--
Messire le Gros,--If you want a lodging in La Roque now is your opportunity. From one who has charge of the keys.
"Eh! eh!" exclaimed the Captain, flushing over his bald head, and hislong fingers crushed the paper in excitement. "What! a chance of that?Show him in--and you, guard, stand at a distance at the door."
In another moment an old man with short-cut grey hair was introduced. Hewalked with the aid of a stick, and kept his eyes on the ground. He washabited in a shabby dark suit, out at elbows, somewhat clerical in cut,and he was shaved like a priest. His face was singularly mottled, inplaces yellow with sunburn, elsewhere white. He had bushy eyebrows thatcontrasted singularly with his close-clipped head and his smooth jaws.
"So!" said Guillem, striding up to him, "you have the keys--and who areyou?"
"Messire Captain, I am your very humble servant."
"To the point! What are you at La Roque, and what do you want with me?"
"Messire, I am now caretaker of the fortress in the cliff. I hold thekeys and am responsible for its custody."
"And what brings you here?"
"Messire, I am willing to let you in."
"Ah! On what terms?"
"Messire--I trust to your generosity."
"That is not a usual mode of doing business. Why do you come to me? Whybetray your trust? There is a reason--is it money? I will pay. What doyou demand?"
"I ask no money."
"Then in Heaven's name what do you want?"
"Revenge!" answered the old man, and bowed his head lower over hisstaff.
"Revenge! Hah! I can understand that. Revenge on someone in La Roque?"
"On someone who is not there now, but who will be there on the nightthat I admit you."
"And you ask me to revenge your wrong."
"I will do that for myself, Messire--only I can do nothing now. I amprepared to admit you within the walls of the town. I can do better thanthat--I will give you access to the castle--the town without the castleis nothing. The castle in itself is nothing. But the castle commands thetown."
"Hah! let us in, within the walls of La Roque, and we will soon have thecastle."
"You think that, Messire? You are mistaken. The castle is victualled forthree months. There is a well in it that never runs dry. There is agarrison under the Sieur Francois de Bonaldi, brother of the Bishop. Ifyou took the town with my help, it would be cracking the nut and notgetting the kernel. From the castle they could rain down rocks on you,and if you attempted to hold the town they would dislodge you, though itmight ruin the houses. No--the town without the castle is an eyeballwithout the iris. Take the castle and the town is yours."
"You may be right," said Le Gros Guillem, after a pause.
"I am positive I am right," said the old man, looking up and droppinghis eyes again.
"What, then, do you propose?"
"On a night--let us say to-morrow before midnight, I will admit you andfive men----"
"Why not more?"
"Harken, Messire, I have thought the plan out."
"Go on!--I am impatient to hear."
"It is you, Messire le Gros, who have interrupted me."
"Go on with your plan! If I do not approve, I will none of it. I am notgoing to run into a trap."
"A trap! Oh, Messire, how can you think of that?"
"Tell me your plan at once."
"It is this, Messire. I will let you in through the postern gate on theupper--the Vitrac--Sarlat Road, you and five men--no more. As many asyou will need can be admitted later; they shall remain without till thecastle is in your hands, and then two of your men who will tarry by thegate will unbar to them and let them all enter. But consider, Messire,it will not do to allow access to more than five at the outset--thereare sentinels on the walls. I have no understanding with them, and theymight see and give the alarm. If the alarm were given before you hadobtained possession of the castle, then the whole expedition would be invain. If you hold the castle you have the heart of La Roque Gageac inyour hands."
"And you will admit us into the fortress?"
"I will admit you and three men."
"It is not enough."
"It suffices. There are but six men in the castle--and no guard is keptat night, for none is needed, as you will see when you get there. Thaton the town walls suffices; one of these men is in agreement with me.Him you must pay, but not me. I shall be well indemnified if I get myrevenge."
"So then--you will first open the gate to me and five men. Then, two areto be left in charge of the gate, I and three others are next to begiven admittance to the castle, where we are to overpower the garrison.You say there are but six men. That is very few."
"Messire, the Bishop says he can afford no more, and his brother, theSieur Francois, has written to urge him to supply him with more, but hesays that his treasury is exhausted and his land impoverished, and thatthere are no more men to be got. Besides, what they reckon on is for thewhole garrison of the town to fly to the castle should the walls of thetown fall into the enemy's power. It has never entered into their headsthat the citadel should be first grasped, and the citadel commandsall--it commands the town, it commands the road to Sarlat, it commandsthe whole
country."
"And the Bishop says there is nothing to be got--no money?"
"So he says; that is the reason he gives. He told the Sieur Francois todo his best with the handful he has; he was unable to assist further."
"We will speedily prove if his words be true. We shall soon make himbeat his head to think that he was so parsimonious that he had scruplesabout melting up his church plate. That only is an exhausted land whichyields naught when it has passed through my sieve." Guillem halted inhis walk, laid one hand on the shoulder of the old man, and said, in atone in which was some suspicion, "So you will turn traitor, betray atrust for nothing!"
"Pardon, Messire; I said that I did it to satisfy my revenge."
"By the Holy Caul of Cahors!"[9] laughed Le Gros Guillem, "revenge issweet, especially to the old. When the kisses of women and the clink ofspurs and the fingering of gold no longer charm, revenge is stillpalatable. What makes you so lust for vengeance, old man?"
[9] _La Sainte Coiffe_--a caul in which it was fabled that the infant Christ was born--was one of the choice relics preserved at Cahors. It fell into the hands of the Huguenots at the memorable capture of Cahors by Henry of Navarre, but was recovered. It happily disappeared at the Revolution.
"Ah, Messire! what do the small troubles of a nobody like me concernyou?"
Guillem let go his hold and recommenced his pacing: "The Holy Caul to myaid! but I, too, have my grievance, and my mouth waters for the samedainty as does yours. Let me but be established at La Roque, and theymay expect me at Le Peuch."
"Who is at Le Peuch, Messire?"
"Old man, one who has injured my honour; one to whom I will show nomercy if I but get him in my grip. From La Roque I can command all theSarladais, and I can swoop down at my leisure on Le Peuch. I shall getgold at Sarlat and blood at Le Peuch. By Heaven, I do not know whichwill best please me!"
"You accept my offer, Messire le Gros?"
"Aye--to-morrow, at an hour to midnight. Are you an ecclesiastic?"
"No, Messire."
"You have a clerical aspect; but I suppose all who serve the Bishopassume something of that. Very well. I shall be there--I and my men.Will you eat? Will you drink?"
"Thank you, Messire. I have not come from far--only across the water.The ferryman put me over. I made some excuse that I had a marrieddaughter to visit, and none suspect evil; but I must make speed andreturn before mistrust breeds. Mistrust will spoil all, Messire."
"Very well. Go! So we meet to-morrow. If you fail--if you prove false,old man--terrible will be your lot."
"I shall not fail. Fear not. I shall not eat, I shall not sleep; I shallcount the hours till you come."
Le Gros Guillem mused a moment. Then he said: "What shall be the sign bywhich you will know we are there--at the gate?"
"You will come," answered the old man, "to the little postern at theSarlat gate. It lays on the right--twenty strides up the slope; you passby a vineyard to it. I will tarry there till I hear you scratch like acat."
"Very well--and the word?"
"The word--for a merry jest--as you said it, Le Peuch."
"Le Peuch--so be it," said the Captain. "Further--the main body of menwill be posted outside, and they are not to be admitted till the castleis ours. How shall I communicate with them?"
"Nothing is easier," replied the castellan. "When Messire is above, andhas got the men of the garrison bound, let him ring the alarm-bell. Itis in the tower of the castle gate, and at once your men below willadmit their fellows, and the townsfolk will awake to discover themselvesbetrayed, and in the hands of the illustrious and very generous CaptainGuillem."
"It is good!" said the _routier._"You have thought this plan well out,old man."
"Oh, I have thought it well out. I have been long about it. I took muchconsideration before all was fitted together. So--there--all is agreed.I wish you well till we meet."
The castellan made for the door, but before he reached it, he rested onhis staff, and burst into a convulsive fit of laughter.
"What is that?" asked the Captain, coming towards him. "What makes youlaugh?"
"Excuse me, Messire. I am old, and my nerves are shaken. I have had muchto agitate them--and these convulsive fits come on me--when I think I amon the eve of a great pleasure--and it will be a great pleasure," heturned and bowed, and made a salutation with his cap, and with extendedhands--"ah! Messire a great pleasure, to open the gate, and let you in!"He bowed profoundly, and went out backwards laughing and saluting.