CHAPTER V
THE ESCAPE OF HAS-SE AND RENE
This speech from his uncle both pleased and troubled Rene. He was gladto learn that it was deemed advisable for some one from the fort tovisit the land of the Alachuas, and troubled to find that if he wentwith Has-se, he must do so without permission from his uncle.Nevertheless he felt certain that he, being Has-se's friend, and alsoregarded by the Indians as the son of the great chief of the white men,could undertake the mission with a greater chance of safety and successthan any one else. He would have urged this view of the case upon hisuncle's attention, but feared that speaking of the subject a secondtime would only result in his being absolutely forbidden to leave thefort on any pretence. The lad felt himself to be truly a man, now thathe was nearly seventeen years old, and like all manly, high-spiritedboys of his age, he was most anxious to enter upon any adventure thatpromised novelty and excitement.
Rene's appearance at this time was very different from that of the boywho, less than a year before, had left the old chateau of his fatherswith tear-stained cheeks. His long curls had fallen under the shears,and his closely cropped hair showed to advantage his well-formed head.He was tall for his age, his muscles had hardened with constantexercise, and his face, neck, and hands were tanned to a ruddy brown bythe hot suns beneath which he had spent so many months. His brown eyesheld a merry twinkle, but at the same time there was an expression ofpride and fixed purpose in his face that well became it.
At this time he wore a small plumed cap, a leathern jacket,knee-breeches, stockings of stout yarn, and short boots, the legs ofwhich fitted closely to his ankles. Simon, the armorer, had made forhim a light steel corselet, that he wore over his leathern jacketwhenever he went beyond the walls of the fort. Upon all suchexcursions he was armed with his well-tried cross-bow (for which hecarried a score of steel-tipped bolts) and a small, but keen-edged,dagger that hung at his belt.
After considering Has-se's proposal all the morning, Rene finallydecided to accept it, and, without notifying any person in the fort ofhis intention, to accompany the young Indian to the land of theAlachuas.
In accordance with this plan he gathered together a number of trinkets,such as he knew would be acceptable to the Indians, and during theafternoon he conveyed these to the forest beyond the fort, where hebound them into a compact package and carefully hid them.
Rene could not account, any more than the others, for Has-se'sdisappearance, nor imagine how his escape had been effected; but hefelt certain that the young Indian would be true to his word, and awaithis coming at the appointed place of meeting when the moon rose abovethe pine-tree tops.
As it would not rise until nearly ten o'clock that evening, and as hisuncle retired early on account of his indisposition, Rene was able tobid him an affectionate good-night and receive his customary blessingwithout arousing any suspicion of his intended departure in the breastof the old soldier.
Leaving his own quarters about nine o'clock, with his cross-bow overhis shoulder, Rene walked with an unconcerned air, but with a beatingheart, directly to the main gate of the fort, at which he waschallenged by the sentinel on duty there. Rene gave the countersign,and was recognized by the soldier, who, however, firmly refused toallow him to pass.
He said, "I am sorry to be obliged to interrupt thy walk, Master DeVeaux; but since the escape of the Indian prisoner last night, we havereceived strictest orders not to allow a living soul to pass the gatesbetween sunset and sunrise."
Thus turned back at the very outset of his adventure, Rene knew notwhat to do. Should he attempt to scale the walls, he might be shotwhile so doing, and at any rate there was the moat beyond, which hecould not possibly cross without detection. Seeking the deep shadow ofan angle, the boy seated himself on a gun-carriage and pondered overthe situation. The more he thought of it the more impossible did itseem for him to escape beyond the grim walls and meet Has-se at theappointed time.
While he was thus overcome by the difficulties of his position, and ashe had about concluded that he had undertaken an impossibility, he wasstartled by the deep tones of the great bell that hung in the archwayof the gate, striking the hour of ten o'clock. Directly afterwardscame the measured tramp of the guard and the clank of their weapons asthey made their round for the purpose of relieving the sentinels onduty, and replacing them with fresh men. Rene sat so near the gate-waythat he could overhear what was said when that post was relieved, anddistinguishing above the rest the voice of his old friend Simon, thearmorer, he became convinced that he had been placed on duty at thismost important point.
After relieving this post the guard resumed their march, and passed soclose to where Rene sat in the shadow of the great gun that, had thenight been a shade lighter, they must have seen him. As it was, heescaped detection, and once more breathed freely as their footstepssounded fainter and fainter in the distance. After a while he heardthem return along the opposite side of the fort, and finally halt infront of the guard-house, when silence again reigned throughout theentire enclosure.
As Rene still sat on the gun-carriage, thinking how he might turn toaccount the fact of his friend Simon being on duty at the main gateway,the sound of a groan came from that direction. As it was repeated, thelad sprang to his feet and walked quietly but rapidly towards the placewhence it came. When near the gateway he laid down his cross-bow andadvanced without it, until brought to a halt by a sharp challenge inthe gruff voice of old Simon.
Rene gave the countersign, and added, "It is I, Rene de Veaux, goodSimon. Hearing thy groans, I came to learn their cause. Whatdistresses thee so grievously?"
"Ah! Master De Veaux," answered the old soldier, "I fear me greatlythat the fever of the bones with which so many of our men are sufferinghas at length laid hold on me, I have been warned for some days of itsapproach, and only a few hours since obtained from good Master Le Moynephysic which, if taken at the outset, prevents much pain. I left it inthe smithy near the forge, not deeming the attack so near; but thechill of the night air hath hastened it, and already am I suffering thetorments of the rack. Tell me, lad, wilt thou fetch me the phial fromthe smithy, that I may test the virtue of its contents?"
"Not so, good Simon," answered Rene, whose thoughts had been busy whilethe old soldier told of his troubles. "I will gladly aid thee, but amconvinced that it can better be done in another way. Go thou for thephysic, for thou canst more readily place hands upon it than I, and atthe same time apparel thyself in garments thicker and more suited tothe chill of the night than those thou wearest. I will stand watchuntil thy return, and pledge thee my word that none shall pass, or bethe wiser for thy absence."
All his soldier's training forbade Simon to accept this offer. Todesert his post, even though he left it guarded by another, would, heknew, be considered one of the gravest military crimes. Therefore thestruggle in his mind between duty on the one side and his sufferings onthe other was long and pitiful.
Finally pain conquered. "Well, well, Master Rene," he said, gruffly,"I must e'en take thy advice, and obtain speedy release from this pain,or else be found here dead ere the post be relieved. Keep thou openkeen eyes and ears, and I pray that no harm may come of this my firstneglect of duty in all the years that I have served the King."
With these words the old soldier thrust his pike into Rene's hands, andhurried away as quickly as his pain would permit towards his ownquarters in the smithy.
As soon as Simon was out of hearing, Rene went and recovered hiscross-bow. Then he carefully and noiselessly undid the fastenings ofthe great gate, and swung it open a few inches. This accomplished, heshouldered Simon's heavy pike, and patiently paced, like a sentry, upand down beneath the dark archway, until he heard approaching footsteps.
He called softly, "Is that thou, Simon?"
"Ay, lad," came the answer.
Then laying down the pike, and seizing his own cross-bow, Rene slippedquickly through the gate (which swung to behind him), and withnoiseless footsteps fled swiftly a
cross the bridge that spanned themoat, and disappeared in the black shadows of the forest beyond.
Rene slipped quickly through the gate.]
Although the moon had risen, and was now well up in the eastern sky, sothat the bridge was brightly illumined by it, Rene crossed unnoticed.As the gate was still firmly fastened when he returned, Simon failed todetect that it had been opened, but the old man spent some minuteslooking for the lad in the archway before he became convinced that hewas gone. Even then he considered that Rene was only endeavoring totease him by thus slipping away, and muttering something about a boybeing as full of mischief as a monkey, the soldier shouldered his pikeand once more resumed his measured pacings up and down the archway.
At the edge of the forest Rene stopped, drew from his bosom a note thathe had written before leaving his room, and thrust it into the end of acleft branch that he stuck into the ground near the end of the bridge.It was addressed to his Excellency the Chevalier Laudonniere,Commandant of Fort Caroline, and its contents were as follows:
"MY DEARLY BELOVED UNCLE,--Doubtless I am doing very wrong in thusleaving the fort and undertaking an important mission without thysanction. It would seem, however, that circumstances are peculiarlyfavorable to my success in this matter, and I feared lest thou wouldstforbid the undertaking, out of a tender regard for my youth andinexperience. I go with the Indian lad Has-se, my friend, to the landof the Alachuas, on a quest for provisions for the fort. In case of mysuccess I will return again at the end of a month, or shortlythereafter. If I fail, and return no more, I still crave thy blessing,and to be remembered without abatement of the love thou hast everextended to me. No person within the fort has aided me in this matter,nor has any one of thy garrison knowledge of my departure.
"I remain, dear uncle, with sincerest respect and deepest love, thynephew,
"RENE DE VEAUX."
Having thus taken measures to inform his uncle of his departure and themission on which he had set forth, Rene tightened his belt, shoulderedhis cross-bow, and turned into the dark pine forest. He made his wayswiftly down the river-bank towards the appointed place of meeting,where he hoped to find Has-se still waiting for him, though it wasalready past the hour that the latter had mentioned. On the way hestopped and recovered the package of trinkets that he had hidden in theforest that afternoon.
As he neared the little stream on the bank of which the Indian lad hadpromised to await his coming, he uttered the cry of Hup-pe the greatowl, which was the signal Has-se had taught him. To his joy it wasimmediately answered from a short distance in advance. In anothermoment he stood beside his friend, who without a word led him to wherea canoe was hidden beneath some overhanging branches. They steppedin, a few strong strokes of the paddles shot them clear of the creek,the bow of their craft was turned down-stream, and ere a word had beenspoken between them, they were gliding swiftly down the glassy moonlitsurface of the great river towards its mouth.