The Firebrand

by S. R. Crockett

  CHAPTER XLV

  FORLORNEST HOPES

  But Rollo himself, our firebrand from the slopes of the FifeLothians--what of him? The foxes that Samson sent among the cornfieldsof Philistia, with the fire at their tails, ran not more swiftly thanhis burning thoughts.

  We have followed his career long enough to know that he is not of thosewho sit long with his head upon his hands. Even as we look we feelassured that while he grasps it between his palms, plans, ideas,possibilities, are passing and repassing within that brain, coming upfor judgment, being set aside for reconsideration, kicked into the limboof the finally rejected, jerked sharply back by the collar for anotherlook over, or brayed in a mortar and mixed into new compounds--allfinally settling down within him into a series of determinations andalternatives as definite as Euclid and more certain of being carriedinto practice than most Acts of Parliament.

  After a long time Rollo raised his head. With supremest indifference heheard about him the first hubbub of the hue-and-cry after Concha. Soheavy was his heart within him that (to his shame be it writ!) he hadnever even missed her as she went up the mountain. Yet she would havemissed him had fifty queens and princesses been in danger of theirlives--aye, and her own honour and that of her race at stake throughoutall their generations.

  Rollo, however, gave no heed, but following his intent, stalked slowlyand steadily to the General's quarters.

  "No one is allowed to enter," called out an officer, whose only mark ofrank was a small golden badge with "C. V." upon it, pinned upon thecollar of his blue shirt. He was sitting cross-legged on the grass,mending the hood of his cloak with a packing needle.

  "I am Colonel Rollo Blair," said the young man; "I brought hither theroyal party, and I must see General Cabrera!"

  "Young man," said the other, in good English, "I am a countryman ofyours--in so far, that is, as a poor Southern may be, whose ancestorsfought on the wrong side at Bannockburn. But for your own sake I adviseyou not to disturb the General at this hour. The occupation cannot berecommended on the score of health."

  "I thank you, sir," said Rollo, "but I have my duty to do and my risksto run as well as you. And if you, an Englishman, desire to be art andpart in the shooting of a Queen-Mother and her little royal daughter,well--I wish you joy of your conscience and your birthright ofEnglishman!"

  The other shrugged his shoulders as he answered.

  "I have nothing to do with the matter. Colonel Rollo Blair brings theparty hither, and General Cabrera shoots them. You two can divide theresponsibility between you as you please!"

  "That is just what I mean to do," quoth Rollo, and lifted the flap ofthe tent door.

  "General Cabrera," he said, "I would speak to you!"

  An inarticulate growl alone replied, and though there was more of wildbeast wrath than permission to enter in the tone, Rollo put aside theflap and entered.

  Cabrera was lying on a camp bed, his face a deathly white, from which apair of small bloodshot eyes peered out with startling effect. He hadbound a red handkerchief about his black hair, and altogether hisappearance was more that of an engorged tiger roused from the enjoymentof his kill, than that of a leading General in the service of the mostChristian and Catholic of Pretenders.

  "Your Excellency," said Rollo, "I have come to urge you to reconsideryour intentions with regard to Queen Maria Cristina, widow of the lateKing, and the child her daughter, and that for several reasons."

  "Let me hear them--and as briefly as may be, senor," thundered Cabrera."I shall then make up my mind whether it would not make for the King'speace that such a firebrand adventurer as you should not be shot alongwith them. And, I can tell you this, that if all the pretty girls in thepeninsula were to come with a whole herd of Papal Bulls, they would notsave you a second time!"

  As he spoke Cabrera reared himself on his elbow and glared at Rollo, whostood still holding the tent flap in his hand.

  "These are my reasons for this request, General," said Rollo, withouttaking the least notice of the threat. "First, such an act wouldalienate the sympathy of the whole civilised world from the cause of DonCarlos."

  "For that I do not give the snap of my finger," cried Cabrera. "I bitemy thumb at the civilised world. What has it done for us or for DonCarlos either? Next!"

  "Secondly, I appeal to your pity, as a man with the heart of a manwithin his breast. This lady hath never done you any wrong. Her daughteris little more than a babe. Spare them, and if an example must be made,be satisfied with executing Senor Munoz and myself. I shall rightwillingly stand up by his side, if the shedding of my blood will savethe Queen and the little Princess!"

  "And the fair maid Dona Concha?" said Cabrera, mockingly. "What wouldshe say to such an act of self-sacrifice?"

  "She would rejoice to see me do my duty, General!" said Rollo, withconfidence.

  Cabrera laughed long, loud, and scornfully.

  "Not by a thousand leagues!" he cried, "not if I know a maiden ofSpain--to save another woman! No, no; go out of this tent in safety, DonRollo. I like a man who has no fear. And indeed great need have you ofthe fear of God, for, when a man dares thus to beard Ramon Cabrera, thefear of man is not in him. Go out, I say, and give thanks to any god youheathen Scots may worship. But do not come hither a second time to prateof mercy and innocence, and 'those who never did me any harm.' See here,_hombre_----"

  Rollo was about to speak, but Cabrera suddenly rose to his feet,steadied himself a moment upon the tent pole, and lifted from a stool asmall tin case like a much battered despatch box. Opening it, herevealed another casket within. He unlocked that, and drawing out a longgrey tress of woman's hair he put it to his lips.

  "The hatred of men has been mine," he cried fiercely, "aye, ever since Iwas twelve years old has my knife kept my head. But through all onewoman has loved me--and only one. See that! 'Tis my mother's hair, whichthe butcher officers of the woman Cristina sent me in mockery, warm andclotted from the shambles of the Barbican. Touch it, cold man of thenorth! Aye, let it stream through your fingers like a love token, andsay--what would you do to those who sent you that?"

  Again he kissed the long grey tresses passionately, ere he laid them inRollo's hand.

  "Your mother's hair, wet with your mother's blood!" he cried, "a prettytalisman to make a man merciful! '_Never harmed me_,' did I hear yousay? Answer me now! What harm had my poor mother done them? Answer me!Answer me, I say. You Scots know the law. They say you read the Bible.'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth!' So I have heard theclerics yelp. Is it not true? Well, for each hair you hold in your handwill I exact a life, queen or consort, maid or babe, what care I? Haveyou any more to say? No? Then give it back to me!"

  With these final words he raised his voice to a shout, and threw himselfon the bed in a passion of tears, with the tress of long grey hairpressed to his face.

  And Rollo went out, having indeed no words wherewith to reply.

  * * * * *

  But though worsted at the General's tent, the young adventurer was by nomeans defeated. None knew better how to fall back that he might thefurther leap. He had failed utterly with Cabrera, and as he came outthe camp was still humming with the scandal concerning Concha. TheEnglishman, having finished repairing the cape of his military cloak,had been awaiting events within the tent with the greatest interest. Infact, he had been undisguisedly listening.

  As Rollo came out he congratulated him in a low tone.

  "Every moment since you entered," he said, "I have been expecting tohear the guard summoned and orders given to have you shot forthwith.Ramon Cabrera does not wait a second time to assure himself of hisprisoners, I can tell you. You have come off very well. Only take myadvice and don't try it again!"

  "I will not!" said Rollo, whose thoughts were elsewhere. "I am obligedto you, sir!"

  "By the way," continued the other, with a pertinacity which offendedRollo in his present state of mind, "there is great news in the camp.That girl who came with you proved to b
e a spark among our tinder. TheseSpaniards can resist nothing in the shape of a petticoat, you know. Andgad, sir, I don't know why in this case they should. For I will say thata handsomer girl I never set eyes upon, and demmy, sir, Colonel FrankMerry has seen some high steppers in his time, I can tell you!"

  "If you refer to the Senorita Concha Cabezos," said Rollo, haughtily,"she is betrothed in marriage to me, and such remarks are highlyoffensive!"

  "No offence--no offence--deuced sorry, I'm sure," said Colonel Frank,whose name as well as his jolly proportions indicated the utmostgood-humour. "But the fact is, I heard--mind, I only say I _heard_--thatthe young lady has gone off with a good-looking young Vitorian trooperof the Estella regiment, one Adrian Zumaya. He removed his horse fromthe lines on pretext of grooming it, and the pair have gone offtogether!"

  "If you will favour me with the name of your informant," answered Rollo,"I shall have the pleasure of running him through the body!"

  The Falstaffian Colonel Don Francisco Merry waved his hand and smiledblandly.

  "In that case, I fear, you must decimate the entire command," he said;"the boys down there are all on the shout on account of Master Adrian'sgood fortune. But I should advise that ingenious young gentleman to makethe best of his time, for if he comes across his old comrades and theirGeneral, he will get singularly short shrift!"

  "You are at liberty to contradict the story," said Rollo, serenely,passing, as his nature was, instantly from anger to indifference."Listen--the Senorita Concha may have left the camp. Your Vitorianfriend may have left the camp. Only, these two did not go together--notethat well. If any man affirm otherwise, let him come to me. I willconvince him of his error!"

  And having spoken these words, Master Rollo dismissed the matter fromhis mind and marched off towards his companions' camp-fire, revolvinghis new alternative plan for the saving of the royal party.

  The bivouac of the little group of friends and allies was close besidethe white house where were bestowed the Queen, her husband, and herlittle daughter. But sentinels paced vigilantly to and fro before it,and besides the soldiers in the courtyard, there was a Carlist post upona rocky eminence equipped with a field-gun, which commanded the wholeposition. So that for the present at least there was no hope of doinganything to deliver the prisoners.

  Rollo called his council together cautiously. They could talk withoutsuspicion during supper, which in old friendly Spanish (and Scottish)fashion was served up in the pot in which it had been cooked. Thus theyclustered round and discussed both plans and pottage as they dippedtheir spoons into the steaming _olla_.

  One of the leader's most serious difficulties had been to decide whetheror not he could afford to trust the Sergeant; a little thought, however,soon assured Rollo that he could not do without Jose Maria, so thatthere remained no choice. The Sergeant had openly attached himself totheir party. They could discuss nothing and undertake nothing withoutexciting his suspicion. Certainly he had been in Cabrera's command. Hehad joined them thence, but--Concha vouched for him, and La Giraldaswore by him. He was a gipsy, and therefore his own interests were hisonly politics.

  So to the company about the steaming _olla_-pot on the hillside, as thetwilight deepened, Rollo related the story of his interview withCabrera. There was no hope in that quarter. So much was certain. If theQueen-Regent and her little daughter could not be delivered before themorning, they would assuredly be murdered.

  "You have a plan, I can see that," said the Sergeant, shrewdly,polishing upon a piece of wash-leather the silver spoon which hehabitually carried.

  "You will aid me in carrying it out if I have?" Thus with equalswiftness came Rollo's cross-question.

  A curious smile slowly overspread the gipsy's leathern visage.

  "I think," he said slowly, "that all of us here have most to gain bykeeping the two queens alive. But I confess I would not be sorry to makethe General a present of my gentleman of the dressing-gown!"

  Then Rollo, reassured by the Sergeant's words, went on to develop hisplans.

  "We must obtain sufficient horses to mount the royal party, and one ofus must guide the Queen and the others on their way to General Elio'scamp. For the horses we will look to you, Sergeant."

  "I have done as much under the eyes of an army in broad daylight, letalone at night and on a mountain-side," replied the man of Ronda,calmly, lighting another of his eternal cigarettes.

  "Then," continued the young leader, "next we must secure some means ofcommunicating with the prisoners within the house. La Giralda willafford us that. The sentries must first be drawn off, then secured, andwith one of us to accompany and guide the party, we must start off thegreat folk for the camp of General Elio at Vera, where, at least, theirpersons will be safe, and they will be treated honourably as prisonersof war."

  "And who is to accompany them?" inquired the Sergeant, his face like amask. For he hated the thought that Munoz should escape a half-dozenCarlist bullets. Jose Maria the brigand, El Sarria the outlaw--evenCabrera the butcher of Tortosa were in the scheme of things, but thisMunoz--pah!

  "This is what I propose," said Rollo. "Let no more than three horses bebrought. So many can easily be hidden in the side gullies of thebarranco. That will allow one for the Queen, one for Munoz, andwhichever of us is chosen to accompany them can carry the littlePrincess before him as a guarantee for the good behaviour of the othertwo."

  "But which may that be?" persisted the Sergeant, with his usualdetermination to have his question answered.

  Rollo made a little sign with his hand as if he would say, "All in goodtime, my friend!"

  "Those of us who stay behind," he went on, "will take up such a positionthat we may stay the pursuit till the fugitives are out of reach. Onething is in our favour. You have heard the silly cackle of the campabout the escape of Concha. If I know her, she is on her way to warnElio of the disgrace to the cause intended by Cabrera. In that case, wemay, if we can hold out so long, hope to be rescued by an expeditionaryparty. Moreover, Elio will come himself, knowing full well that nothingbut his presence as representative of Don Carlos will have power to moveCabrera from his purpose--that, or the menace of a superior force."

  "And who is to go with the Queen?" asked the Sergeant, for the thirdtime.

  Rollo waited a moment, his glance slowly travelling round the groupabout the little camp-fire.

  "Let us see first who cannot go--that is the logical method," heanswered, weighing his words with unaccustomed gravity. "For myselfobviously I cannot. The post of danger is here, and I alone amresponsible. Don Juan there and the Count are also barred. Etienne doesnot know the way, nor Mortimer the language. La Giralda is an old womanand weak. Sergeant Cardono and El Sarria--you two alone remain. What sayyou? It lies between you."

  "Go or stay--it is the same to me," said the Sergeant. "Only let meknow."

  "I say the same!" echoed El Sarria.

  "Then we will settle it this way," said the young man. "Sergeant, whomhave you in the world depending solely on you for love or daily bread?"

  A gleam, like lightning seaming a black cloud irregularly, for a momenttransfigured the face of the ex-brigand of Ronda.

  "Thank God," he said, "there is now no one!"

  "Then," said Rollo, with a mightily relieved brow, "it is yours to go,El Sarria! For not one alone, but two, await you--two who depend uponyou for very life."

  Ramon Garcia did not reply, but an expression, grim and sardonic,overspread the features of the Sergeant.

  "For other reasons also it is perhaps as well," he said; "for had I beenchosen, an accident might have happened to a grandee of Spain!"