The Casque's Lark; or, Victoria, the Mother of the Camps

by Eugène Sue

  CHAPTER VII.

  SHADOWS ACROSS THE PATH.

  The night was far advanced. I had reached within a few steps from myhouse when I saw through the dark a man crouching on the sill of one ofthe windows. He seemed to be peeping through the shutters. I gave astart. It was the window of my wife's room.

  I seized Elwig's arm and said to her in a low voice:

  "Do not budge--wait--"

  She stopped and stood motionless. Controlling my emotion I advancedcautiously, seeking to avoid making the sand crunch under my feet. Ifailed. My steps were heard; the man jumped down from the window silland fled. I rushed after him. Thinking that I meant to leave her in thelurch, Elwig ran after me, overtook me and seized me by the arm, cryingwith terror:

  "If I am found alone in the Gallic camp I shall be killed!"

  Despite all I could do, I could not disengage myself of Elwig's holduntil after the man had vanished from sight. He had too long a lead andthe night was too dark for me to endeavor to catch him. Surprised anduneasy at the incident, I retraced my steps, and knocked at the door ofmy house.

  I could hear from within the voices of my wife and her sister, whoseemed uneasy at my prolonged absence. Although they knew not that Ihad gone to the Frankish camp, they had not yet retired.

  "It is I!" I cried to them. "It is I, Schanvoch!"

  The door was no sooner opened than my wife, seeing me by the light thatSampso held in her hand, threw herself into my arms, saying in a tone ofsweet and tender reproach:

  "At last you are back! We began to feel alarmed about you, seeing youwere gone since early morning."

  "And we, who counted upon you for our little feast," put in Sampso; "butI suppose you met with old comrades in arms, and time passed quickly intheir company."

  "Yes, I suppose the conversation was strung out over battles," addedEllen still hanging on my neck, "and my dear Schanvoch forgot his wife,just a little--"

  Ellen was interrupted by a cry from Sampso. She did not at first noticeElwig, who had remained in shadow near the door. At the sight, however,of the savage creature--pale, sinister and motionless--my wife's sistercould not repress her surprise and involuntary fear. Ellen quicklystepped back, noticed the presence of the priestess, and gazing at me asmuch surprised as her sister, said:

  "Schanvoch, who is that woman?"

  "Why, sister," cried Sampso forgetting the presence of Elwig and lookingat me more closely, "look, the sleeves of Schanvoch's blouse are redwith blood--he is wounded!"

  My wife grew pale, stepped quickly back to me and anxiously scanned myface.

  "Calm yourself," I answered; "my wounds are slight. I concealed from youboth the mission on which I was bound. I went to the camp of the Franks,our savage foes. I carried a message from Victoria."

  "To the camp of the Franks!" Ellen and Sampso cried terrified. "Thatmeant death!"

  "And this is the being who saved my life," I said to my wife, pointingat Elwig, who stood motionless at the door. "I must bespeak theattention of you both in her behalf until to-morrow."

  When they learned that I owed my life to the Frankish woman my wife andher sister hastened toward Elwig, moved by a simultaneous impulse ofgratitude; but they almost immediately stopped short, intimidated andeven frightened by the sinister and impassive countenance of Elwig, thepriestess, who seemed not to see them, and whose mind probably hoveredover scenes far away.

  "Give her some dry clothes, those that she has on are wet," I said to mywife and her sister. "She does not understand Gallic; your thanks willbe lost upon her."

  "Had she not saved your life," Ellen said to me, "I would think thewoman's face looks somber and threatening."

  "She is a savage like the rest of her people. Get her some dry clothes,and I shall take her to the little side room, where I shall lock her upas a matter of precaution."

  Sampso went into a contiguous room to fetch a tunic and mantle forElwig, while I said to my wife:

  "Did you hear any noise at the window of your room to-night, shortlybefore I came in?"

  "None whatever--neither did Sampso; she did not leave me since evening;we both felt uneasy at your absence. But why do you ask?"

  I did not then answer my wife, seeing that Sampso at that momentreturned with the clothes that she had gone after. I took them, passedthem over to Elwig and said to her:

  "My wife and her sister offer you these clothes. Yours are wet. Is thereanything else that you wish? Are you hungry, or thirsty? What would youhave?"

  "I want solitude," was Elwig's answer, rejecting the proffered clotheswith a gesture; "I want the black night. Only that will suit me atpresent."

  "Very well--follow me," I said to her.

  Leading the way, I opened the door of a little chamber, and raising thelamp in order to light its interior, I said to the priestess:

  "You see yonder couch--rest yourself, and may the gods render peacefulto you the night that you are to pass under my roof."

  Elwig made no answer; she threw herself upon the couch and covered herface with her hands.

  "And now," I said to my wife as I closed and locked the door, "theseduties of hospitality being attended to, I burn with the desire toembrace my little Alguen."

  I found you, my child, sleeping peacefully in your cradle. I covered youwith kisses, that were all the sweeter to me seeing I had that very dayfeared never to see you again. Your mother and her sister examined andbandaged my wounds. They were slight.

  While Ellen and Sampso were attending to me, I spoke to them of the manwhom I had caught sight of on the window sill, and who seemed to bepeeping through the shutters. They were greatly astonished at my words;they had heard no sound; they had been together since evening. Whiletalking over the matter, Ellen said to me:

  "Did you hear the news?"

  "No."

  "Tetrik, the Governor of Gascony and relative of Victoria, arrived thisevening. The Mother of the Camps rode out on horseback to meet him. Wesaw him go by."

  "And did Victorin accompany his mother?"

  "He rode beside her. That must be the reason that we did not see himduring the day."

  The arrival of Tetrik gave me food for reflection.

  Sampso left me alone with Ellen. It was late. Early the next morning Iwas to report to Victoria and her son the result of my mission to thecamp of the Franks.