Flower o' the Heather: A Story of the Killing Times

by Robert William MacKenna

  *CHAPTER XXX*

  *IN THE TIGER'S DEN*

  Suddenly I woke, startled. Some noise had disturbed me. I listenedintently. Nothing stirred in the house. I sat up in bed, and peeredinto the darkness, only relieved by the fitful light of the moonstealing through the window. What had wakened me? I waited anxiously;then I heard three little taps, clear and metallic, upon the window. Isprang up and looked out, and saw in the dim-lit courtyard the tallfigure of a man, who moved forward when he saw me, and I recognised thewooden leg of Hector. Eagerly I undid the window, swinging it backgently on noiseless hinges, and craned forward into the night. Hectorput a hand to his mouth, and whispered, "Wheesht! wheesht!" then walkedsoftly to the door of the house. Hastily throwing on some clothes Icrept on tip-toe downstairs, and opening the door admitted him to thekitchen.

  With uplifted finger he whispered, "Haste ye, and dinna wake the auldwoman. We'll talk on the road." As silently as possible I hastened tomy room and finished dressing; then, I rejoined the packman. As Ientered the kitchen he was lifting the poker from the fireplace."She'll understand--that's a sign," he said, as he laid it carefully onthe top of the table.

  "But what," I whispered, "about paying her?"

  "Dinna worry on that score," he said; "she kens me. That's eneuch.There's danger afoot. Come on."

  He led the way to the door, which he opened noiselessly and together wepassed out into the courtyard.

  At the mouth of the close he paused and peered carefully in everydirection. Then he turned to me and whispered, "There's naebody aboot."We passed quickly into the street, and, walking close to the houses sothat we were in their full shadow, we hurried away.

  From the direction we took I judged that our path lay parallel to thecourse of the river on the side opposite the town of Dumfries. We hadwalked perhaps a mile before Hector again broke the silence. Stillwhispering, he said:

  "Man, I've had an awfu' day. Horace has the richt word every time:'_Recenti mens trepidat metu_'--'My hert's a' o' a dither wi' fricht.'What's yer name? ye've never tellt me."

  For the first time it dawned on me that he did not know my name. He hadcalled me Joseph at the road-end when Dalzell had taken us unawares, butsince then the matter had never been mentioned between us. "My name isWalter de Brydde," I said.

  "Ay," he said, "but what name was ye kent by when ye were a trooper?"

  "I called myself Bryden," I replied.

  "That's it. It was you richt enough. Oh, I've had a terrible day. ButI had better begin at the beginning, and tell ye the hale story.

  "This mornin' I left my lodgings wi' full purpose and intention o' gaunto see the widda. Weel, it's a lang road and a drouthy, so beforeleavin' the toon I drapped into the Hole i' the Wa', to ha'e a pint o'tippenny. It's a hoose I aye frequent when I'm in Dumfries. Weel, as Iwas tellin' ye, I was sittin' in the corner, and I'd juist passed thetime o' day wi' the landlord, when in daundered twa sodgers. As soon asI saw the sicht o' their coats, my ears were cocked to catch theirwords. They were talkin' as they cam' in. The ane was sayin' to theither; 'I could stake my life it was him.' They sat doon and orderedtheir yill, and went on talkin'. I didna catch a' that they said, butthey hadna been talkin' long ere I guessed it was aboot you. I juistgot a word noo and again, but I've pit them thegither. They wentsomething like this:

  "'Aye, at Wigtown, the nicht efter the women were drooned.'

  "'Then what think ye he's daein' here?'

  "'Oh, I canna tell that.'

  "'I thocht ye had lang syne made up your mind that he had deid on themoors like a braxy sheep. What's this they ca'd him?---- Oh,ay,--Bryden. What mak's you think it was him?'

  "'Weel, I saw him yesterday in the High Street. He had a week's growthon his face, and that in itsel' is a disguise, and he walks wi' a limp,which he didna dae when he was wi' us; but what jogged my memory was awee jerk he gied his shoothers. I couldna mind off-haun' where I hadseen it afore. Hooever, an 'oor afterwards when I was thinkin' o'something else, it flashed across me that Bryden used to move hisshoother and his left elbow exactly that wey. So says I to masel',that's the man; and I went back to the place where I'd seen him. Ofcoorse he was there nae langer.'

  "'What are ye gaun to dae? Ha'e ye tellt yer Captain yet?"

  "'No' me! I'm no' sae saft. I'm keepin' my een open, an' if he's stillin Dumfries I'll be comin' across him ere lang and I'll arrest him onsuspicion, and tak' him afore Lag himsel'. Man, there's a price on hisheid.'

  "Weel, I had learned a lot, and I knew it was you they were after, for Iha'e noticed the jerk o' your left elbow tae. So I made up my mind thatafore I should gang oot to Locharbriggs I wad slip across to PhemieMcBride's and gi'e ye warning. So I finished my yill and paid my scorean' set oot.

  "Juist as I was aboot to leave the close-mooth, a dragoon clapped me onthe shoother and said: "'You're Hector the packman, are ye no?'

  "'Ay,' says I. 'What of it?'

  "'Weel,' says he, 'ye maun come wi' me. Ye're wanted.'

  "'Wanted?' says I. 'Wha wants me?'

  "'Sir Robert Grier o' Lag. I've nae doot ye've heard tell o' him.'

  "'Ay,' I answered, 'I ken Sir Robert weel. What does he want wi' me?'

  "'Come and fin' oot for yoursel',' said he. 'An' ye'd better mak'haste, for if we keep him waitin' there'll be hell to pey. Haste ye!'

  "As we hurried doon tae Lag's hoose in the Plain Stanes, I began towonder if his summons could ha'e onything to dae wi' the little affairyou mind in the woods near New Abbey. I'm sayin' nae mair; even thedarkness may ha'e ears.

  "Weel, by and by we cam' to the hoose at the end o' the Turnpike Wynd,and I went up the stair wi' the trooper. He led me into a room, and wewaited there thegither. As we waited I heard Lag's voice comin' fraethe next room. He was swearin' in a wey the very deil himsel' couldna'ha'e bettered. He was yellin' like ane possessed for cauld water, and asI stood in the room a wee bit drummer boy cam' rinnin' up the stairs wi'a pail o' water that he had brocht frae the Nith. As he passed throughthe room where I was standin', it went jaup, jaup, jauppin' on thefloor. He knocked at Lag's door and syne went in, and I heard the waterbeing poured into a basin. Then I heard Lag shoutin', 'It's no cauldava. It's boilin', ye wee deevil! Get awa doon to the water foranither pailfu',' and wi' fear on his face the wee laddie raced throughthe room as shairp as a hare and clattered doon into the street.

  "Weel, I waited wi' the trooper in the antechamber while the oaths fraethe other side o' the door cam' thick and fast. I may say I listenedwi' a kind o' admiration. Wi' some folk swearin' is naething mair thana bad habit, but wi' Lag it seems to be a fine art. But that's by theway. By and by the sodger that had brocht me took courage and knockedat the door. It was opened by another trooper. The first trooper gavehim a message for Lag, and he shut the door and delivered it, for thenext thing I heard was Lag shoutin': 'Well, the packman maun juist bidemy time. I'm far ower bad to see him the noo!' so his body-servant cam'oot again and tellt the trooper that had me in haun'. He took me awa'doon the stairs to the kitchen where there was a lot mair sodgers.Weel, ye ken, at this I was gey perplexed. Here was I, haeing promisedto ca' on the widda in the mornin', held a prisoner. And I had you onmy mind as weel, for frae what I heard in the Inn, you were in danger.So I said to my guard:

  "'If Sir Robert canna see me the noo, is there ony need for me to bidehere? I'll gi'e ye my promise to come back at four o'clock thisafternoon, when I hope Sir Robert will be able to see me.'

  "'No, no,' said the sodger, 'that winna dae ava. I'm takin' nae risks.'

  "Weel, there was nothing for it but that I should stop where I was,though it was sair against the grain. Hooever, they produced a bottle o''Solway waters,'[#] and I'm bound to say they didna lack forhospitality. Nothing loth, I took a drappie, and then I took anither,and we began to talk merrily.

  [#] Smuggled brandy.

  "The mornin' slipped by, and still Lag
wasna' ready to see me. Everynoo and then the wee drummer laddie raced through the kitchen wi'anither pail o' water frae the Nith, and when he had disappeared wi' thewater jaup-jaupping ower the side o' the bucket, the troopers wouldnudge each other and say 'Guid sakes, his feet maun be in hell already,'and the callousness o' their words would mak' me shiver. Fegs, theLatin has it best: '_Horresco referens_'--'It gies me a grue to thinko't.'

  "By and by the clock struck one and we had oor dinner thegither. I'mbound to say that if the troopers' 'Solway waters' was guid, thevictuals were likewise o' excellent quality, and I made a guid meal. Itwas maybe twa o'clock when the sodger that had been in Lag's room cam'doon into the kitchen. I thocht noo my 'oor had arrived and that Ishould yet ha'e time to get oot to Locharbriggs afore I was due to meetyou. But nae sic luck! 'He's asleep noo,' he said. 'He's managed todroon the pain in Nith water and a couple o' bottles o' Oporto.' Weel,I saw that the outlook was no' very bricht for me; but I made anitherattempt to persuade my guard to let me away for an' 'oor or twa,promisin' solemnly that I should return punctually. But he would ha'enane o't. So there I was, kept a prisoner, and the afternoon draggedwearily by.

  "At lang last six o'clock cam', and I knew that if you hadna fa'en intothe haun's o' the troopers you would be waitin' for me at the Port o'Vennel. I was sair perplexed. I wondered if I daur bribe the weedrummer to tak' a note to you, and I had framed a suitable epistle inLatin that I jaloused nane o' thae ignorant troopers would understaun'.Then I thocht better o't; for a note to you frae me micht direct theirattention to you, and I didna want that. The 'oors o' the evenin'flitted awa' and by and by it cam' to half-past nine, and the sodgercam' doon the stairs again and said: 'Sir Robert is awake noo and wantsto see the packman.'

  "So I went up the stairs, and as I left the kitchen ane o' the trooperslaughingly cried after me:

  "'If he wants to put "the boot" on ye, ye'd best offer him yourtree-leg. He's likely tae be that drunk he winna ken the differ.'

  "The sodger that was his body-servant threw open the door o' his roomand said: 'The packman, sir,' and in I stepped as bold as ye like. Hewas sittin' in a big chair wrapped in a lang flowered goon. His feetrested on twa big cushions and were rolled up in bandages. Juist besidethe cushions stood a basin o' water; it was the same, nae doot, that thewee drummer boy had been kept busy fillin'. Lag glowered at me as Icam' through the door, and twisted roon' in his chair.

  "'Good evening, Sir Robert,' says I. 'I hope you are feeling better.'

  "His brow gathered in a knot, and he growled: 'Wha the devil said I hadbeen ill? I havena asked ye here to talk aboot mysel'. It's you I wantto put a few questions to.'

  "'I am at yer service, sir,' I said. 'What can I dae for you?'

  "'Well,' says he, 'I've had a message from Sir Thomas Dalzell. He tellsme that four of his troopers were set on by a gang of ruffians in NewAbbey Road twa or three days sin', and seriously mishandled; and heminds that he saw you on the road at Loch End that very day. Hejalouses that after he saw you you took the road to New Abbey. What hewants to ken is this: Did you see onybody on the road that afternoon whomight have been guilty o' this criminal attack upon the soldiers o' HisMajesty?'

  "Weel, that was a straicht question, but it wasna to be replied to wi' astraicht answer; so I thocht it wiser to evade the issue, an' I said:'Sir, can you gi'e me ony further particlers? Hoo mony sodgers werethere? What was the number o' their assailants? Where did the attacktake place, and what happened to the sodgers?'

  "That shook him off the scent, though, for a minute, I was feared thathe saw through me, for he said: 'Now, Hector, ye talk like a damnedhedge-lawyer. There were four soldiers involved. As far as Sir Thomascan make out, the number of their assailants was six or eight, and theattack took place on the road about a mile and a half from New Abbey.After being knocked senseless, the soldiers were carried into a wood andtied to a tree. They werena found till next day.'

  "Now I knew where we stood. Dalzell and Lag had got the scent a' wrang.It wasna for me to gi'e the scent richt. So it didna cost me onyscruples o' conscience to make replies to the facts that he had laidbefore me. 'Sir Robert,' says I, 'the case baffles me a' thegither. Imaun ha'e been very near the wood ye speak o' at the time this attackwas made upon the troopers, but I saw nae sodgers on the road, nor did Icome across ony six or eight men wha micht ha'e assailed them. As amatter o' fact I met naebody between Loch End and New Abbey, except apuir auld body gatherin' a wheen sticks.' And then an idea occurred tome--for I knew that if Lag or Dalzell couldna lay their hands upon themen wha had attacked the troopers, they would start harryin' everyhoose, where there was a likely young man, between Loch End and NewAbbey. That would only mean persecution for innocent folk; so, though Iwas fain enough to save my ane skin and yours, I didna' want others tobe punished for oor deeds, and I threw oot a suggestion at which Lagjumped. 'It's only a theory o' mine, Sir Robert,' I said, 'but it'sjuist possible that this assault on the sodgers was made by the sailorsfrae some smugglin' craft that micht be lyin' in the Solway ayont NewAbbey.'

  "'Man, Hector,' he said, 'that's worth thinkin' o'. There was a smugglerreported in the estuary a few days syne. I maun look into that.'

  "And then the pain in his feet began to get bad, and he cursed horribly.When he got his breath again, he looked at me and said:

  "'And now, Hector, a word in your lug. You're supposed to be a guidKing's man, and I have no direct evidence that you are not; but it's aqueer thing that when you drop a hint to the King's representativesaboot some hill-man's nest and the troopers gang to harry it, there arenae eggs in it'; and he glowered at me savagely. 'Have a care,' hegrowled, 'have a care!'

  "I thocht it was time to change the subject, and lookin' doon frae hisface to his bandaged feet I said: 'I would coont it a high honour if yewad permit me to try some o' my magical salve on your feet. I canassure ye, sir, it has powers o' a high order; it's used in the Court o'His Majesty the King himsel'.' Wi' that I produced a wee pot o' it ooto' my pocket. 'It will,' I said, 'produce instant relief and ensure forye a guid nicht's rest. May I ha'e the honour o' tryin' it, sir?'

  "'Well,' says Lag, 'I'm ready to try anything. Nobody but mysel' kensthe torment I have been suffering. It's fair damnable.'

  "Withoot anither word I dropped down on my knees beside him and took offthe cauld water bandages wi' as much gentleness as I could; and whenthey were off and I saw his feet, I kent hoo he maun ha'e suffered.They were the colour o' half-ripe plums and that swollen that if ye putyer finger on them ye left a dint as though they had been clay. I saidto mysel', says I, 'Hector, here's a test for yer salve,' so I talked toLag cheerily o' the wonderfu' cures I had made afore, and a' the while,as gently as I could, I was rubbin' his feet wi' it. When I had beenrubbin' for the better pairt o' half an 'oor, he said: 'Man, Hector,ye're nae fule. Ye've gi'en me greater ease than I've had a' day. Didye say ye made this saw yoursel'?' I told him it was my ain discoveryand that nane but me could supply it, but if he would dae me the honouro' acceptin' a pot or twa, he would mak' me a prood man. Then Ibandaged his feet and washed my hands.

  "'That's fine,' he said. 'Now, Hector, one good turn deserves another,'and taking up a wee bell that stood on a table beside him he rang it,and his body-servant came back into the room. 'Bring a couple o'bottles o' Malvoisie,' he ordered. 'And at the same time fetch thatsoldier of Sir Thomas Dalzell's wha brought the message this morning.'

  "'In a few minutes back came the servant wi' a couple o' bottles in hishand and behind him a trooper wi' a bandage roond his heid. Irecognised him at aince. He was the fourth that we laid oot in thewood. When I saw him I maun say I got an awfu' fricht; for if ye mindhe was the ane that had a chance o' seein' you and me. I thocht taemasel'--Noo, Hector, ye're in a bonnie hole, but neither by act or worddid I let on that I was perturbed, and I waited for what should happennext. Lag ordered his man to open ane o' the bottles. Then he pouredoot a glass for me and anither for himsel', and turnin' to
Dalzell'sman, he said:

  "'Can ye tell me if these ruffians that set on you were sailors? and howmany o' them were there a' thegither?'

  "The man hesitated for a wee and then answered: 'I'm no clear, sir,whether they were sailors or no'. Ye see, sir, I got an awfu' crack onthe heid, and ever since I've felt gey queer like. They may ha'e beensailors; that I dinna ken, nor am I quite sure hoo mony there were. Imin' only o' seein' twa masel'; but I'm sure o' this, that nae twasailors nor twa onything else, short o' deevils, could ha'e laid ootfour sodgers o' the King's as we were laid oot. There maun ha'e beenaboot six o' them. There may ha'e been eight or ten, but I'm no sureava, sir.'

  "'Well,' said Lag, angry-like, 'that's no muckle help. Could yourecognise one o' them if you were to see him again?'

  "I looked at the sodger oot of the corner of my e'e. If I hadna had awooden leg my knees would ha'e knocked thegither, but I waited.

  "'Yes, sir,' said the sodger, 'I'm sure o't. I could recognise baith o'the men that attacked me.'

  "Lag pointed straicht at me. 'Tak' a look here,' he said. 'Have youever seen this man before?'

  "I looked straicht at Sir Robert and wondered if he was playin' wi' meas a cat plays wi' a moose, and then I turned to the sodger so that hecould tak' a guid look at me; but a' the time I was considerin' whatmicht be passin' in the crafty mind o' Lag, cauld and cruel behin' hisknotted brow. Did he ken the truth? The sodger looked at me frae heidto foot. The licht in the room was dim, and by way o' showin' that Ifeared naething, I said: 'By your leave, Sir Robert,' and I lifted aneo' the lichted candles frae the table and held it in my haun' so thatthe sodger could tak' a guid look at me. He scanned me carefully againand shook his head, saying:

  "'I ha'e never seen this man afore. The man I mind was clean shaved.'

  "Wi' that I walked ower to the table and laid the candlestick doonagain.

  "The sodger saluted and turned to go, but I spoke up: 'Sir Robert,' saidI, 'may I examine this puir fellow's heid? I micht by the applicationo' my magical salve, with whose virtues you are already acquaint, gi'ehim some relief.'

  "'Certainly, certainly,' said Lag, now in a good temper.

  "So wi' that I took the bandage off the trooper's heid. Ma certie! whata beauty I had put there wi' my ain guid stick. It was the size o' apigeon's egg, and when I felt it between my fingers I was prood o' myhandiwork. But I never let on. I examined it wi' care; then by way o'raisin' a laugh oot o' Lag I said: 'This young man has to thankProvidence that he was born wi' a thick heid.' Saying which, I took alittle o' the salve and began to rub it on the lump. The fellow winced,but in the presence o' Lag he was frichtened to mak ony resistance. Iput a guid dressin' on the swelling and bound it up wi' a kerchief. Hewas wonderfu' gratefu', but at a sign frae Lag he went off and I wasleft alane wi' Sir Robert. He signed to me to sit doon, and passed me aglass o' the Malvoisie. As I took it he raised his glass and said, 'TheKing, God save Him,' and I, mindin' the advice I had gi'en to you to bea' things to a' men, followed his example and said, 'The King, God saveHim,' and under my breath I added to masel', 'God kens he needs it.'Weel, I sat and cracked wi' Lag for maybe half an 'oor and tellt himmair than ane guid story and had a he'rty laugh or twa oot o' him. ThenI pushed the glass away, saying: 'By your leave, Sir Robert, if ye'redune wi' me, I'll be obliged for yer permission to return to mylodgings, for I maun be off on the road the morn.'

  "He raised nae objection, and said: 'You won't forget to let me have apot o' that saw.'

  "'Certainly, Sir Robert,' I replied, 'you shall ha'e it the first thingin the mornin': or, if it pleases you to send a trooper wi' me you canha'e a pot o't the nicht.'

  "'That's better,' he said. 'And you'll tak' this bottle o' wine, andwhenever ye ha'e a wee drap o't, I hope you will think kindly o' Lag.He's a man sorely miscalled in this country-side.'

  "'Thank ye kindly, Sir Robert,' says I. 'I shall see that you aresupplied wi' my magical salve for the rest o' yer life. And if on yernext visit to London ye should ha'e the chance o' droppin' a word intothe ear o' His Majesty, ye micht juist ask him quietly whether he hasused that pot I sent him a twalmonth sin'. I'm inclined to imagine,between you and me, Sir Robert, that it never reached His Majesty's ainhand. I think it was stopped on the wey by ane o' the Court ladies whaused it to make hersel' beautiful.'

  "He threw back his held and roared wi' laughter.

  "'Man, Hector,' he said, 'ye're a caution. But mair than likely ye'rericht. I've been to the Court mysel', and God kens some o' the womenthere would need a' the magical saws in the world to make them bonnie.I'll juist put it to His Majesty, Hector, and ask him,' and he roaredwi' laughter again.

  "He rang the bell, and his body-servant cam' in, and he gave orders thatane o' the men was to accompany me to my lodgings to get a pot o' salve.So I set oot, gled as you can weel guess, to be under the open sky aincemair. The sodger wha accompanied me was a douce lad, and by way o'reward for his convoy I gied him a wee bit o' Virginia weed to himsel',forby four pots o' the salve to tak' to Sir Robert.

  "Juist as I let him oot o' the door o' my lodging, the clock strucktwal, and the soond o' it brocht back to me the thocht that you wad beat a sair loss to ken what had happened to me. I turned things ower inmy mind and it seemed to me that Dumfries is no' exactly a safe placefor us at the moment. So I decided that in an 'oor or twa, when a'should be quiet, I would slip ower and waken you and tak' ye awa' oot o'danger.

  "So here we are. That's the true story o' a' that has happened since Isaw you last; and as we are weel oot o' the toon and there's naebodyaboot, I think we micht rest oorsels a wee and, juist by way o'celebratin' oor escape oot o' the tiger's den, we micht sample theMalvoisie. I've got Lag's bottle, and I aye cairry a corkscrew."