The Last of the Vikings

by John Bowling

  CHAPTER XXXVIII.

  THE SAXON'S REVENGE.

  "E'en these, when of their ill-got spoils possess'd, Find sure tormentors in the guilty breast."

  Homer.

  The same night, following the tragic ending of the tournament, and abouttwo hours after Curfew had rung out its warning to churls, housecarles,and Saxons, all and sundry, who should be caught abroad after the bellhad voiced the hour, there were seated in the Abbot's room twoindividuals engaged in a most earnest conversation. The look of deadlymalignity on their countenances, and the low, fierce oaths with whichthey frequently emphasised their speech, was palpable evidence that theyplotted mischief. Though one of them had partially divested himself ofhis attire, there was that about his dress which betokened that it wasstrangely out of keeping with the language he was using, and thebusiness he was engaged in. The other was dressed in soldier's attire,and in the sturdy figure we easily recognise Pierre, confidante andwilling tool of Baron Vigneau, and the sharer in most of his villainousexploits. The Abbot's room was spacious and lofty, and he had had ithung with costly silken hangings, and rich Turkish carpets covered thefloor. The furniture also was of carved oak, delicate in workmanship,and of priceless value; for many handicraftsmen of great skill andexperience came over with the Normans, or followed in the wake of thesoldiery. On an exquisitely carved cabinet had been hastily thrust theremains of a substantial repast of boiled capon and venison cutlets;whilst on the table between them were two silver tankards containinggood Rhenish wine, and from which libations, copious and frequent, werepoured down two throats which it seemed impossible to effectually slake.Several letters on parchment, with the massive seal of De Montfortimpressed upon them, were lying on the table betwixt them, the contentsof which had been duly read over to Pierre by the Abbot; and thefollowing conversation was proceeding:--

  "No doubt," said the Abbot, "the whole thing was arranged by the cunningold fox De Montfort and his daughter. The make-believe of a foreigncousin was a ruse to prevent the exposure of the Saxon villain. Hisadvent, also, was so timed that not the slightest opportunity was givento any one to see through his disguise; and he spoke the Norman languagewell."

  "Well, I have often wondered at De Montfort's leniency to those Saxonwolves on the hills. He professed to send for help to William when hewas at York last; but there has been no help forthcoming," said Pierre.

  "I don't believe he ever sent such message; but the devil himself is notmore cunning than De Montfort, and, unless we act promptly, he'llcircumvent _us_."

  "Well, what's the business? Are you going to make use of those letters,and have him brought to book promptly?"

  "That is it. What I wish, is that you, Pierre, should take this matterin hand; for it must be done by some one with sufficient courage anddetermination. I should like you to proceed forthwith to the court ofhis Majesty William, and lay before him these damning proofs of DeMontfort's treachery. If you will undertake this, I confidentlyanticipate that within three months the traitor's head will be suspendedover the gates of his castle. That done, I shall urge my suit for thepossession of his forfeited lands, with well-assured success. Then,trust me, I will humble the pride of his haughty and scornful daughter.She shall know promptly, for I will teach her, that though Vigneau isdead, Vigneau still lives. I love her, and I hate her, and when she isin my power I will have my fill of both love and hate, mark me! I willhave quits for all I owe her, for she has not only compassed the deathof my brother, but she has thwarted me here constantly, by taking underher protection that old hypocrite Adhelm (meaning myself). I'll berevenged on both of them at a blow, mark me, Pierre!"

  "Humph! This sounds well and good, your Reverence, no doubt, from yourstandpoint; but, if you will excuse me, I didn't see very clearly atwhat point Pierre came in when these good things were to be distributed.Now, it appears that I shall figure very prominently in the work ofscotching this snake. So, so! well and good, revenge may be very sweetto you, and maybe it will be sweet to me; I'll not deny I like theflavour of it, but, after that, what additional? I shall want either theskin or the carcase, certainly, if I shoot the deer; if not, why, marry,I'll never bruise my shins in the chase. So, will you please point outwhere this thing is to be profitable to me? Devil's work, you know,should be well paid, for we must scorch for it by-and-bye, must we not,eh?"

  "Thou shalt have everything I am able to bestow, Pierre; and thou shaltfind that in my exalted position my powers of promotion will be equal tothy deserts. How sayest thou? wilt thou try the monk's calling? Nothingeasier! I was a soldier ere I donned the _hair shirt_, eh! and took tomortifying the flesh, as thou well knowest I have done most rigidly atall times."

  "Marry, 'tis quite true, the devil himself would vouch for it; and amerry jest it is. And now, after your Reverence's example, there's nosaying, but we may expect the devil himself to turn monk some day; and,in faith, by copying your Reverence closely, he'd make more sinnersin't, than he would by his old tricks;" and Pierre laughed mostimmoderately.

  "Thou hadst ever a sharp tongue, Pierre, and little regard for thybetters; but I absolve thee. Nevertheless, I advise _thee_ to the _holy_calling also. Then what could hinder me bestowing upon thee my Abbot'soffice? The best of all things would be at thy command--ease, wine,wenches, and a jolly fat trencher at all times. I warrant thee there isno life so merry and so bountiful as the command of a good fatmonastery."

  "Bravo!" shouted Pierre, who was immensely tickled by the Abbot'ssuggestion; and, bursting again into a roar of laughter, he cried,"well, this is too rich for anything! Pierre turned _Saint_; ha, ha, ha!'Twould be after the most godly example of your Grace, I trow. Ha, ha!good! I'll wash it down, anyhow;" and he raised the tankard to his lips,and cried, "Drink to't, your Reverence. Here's to _Saint Pierre of piousmemory_;" and promptly he drained the tankard to the bottom; then,bringing it down again with a bang upon the table, he fairly roared withlaughter.

  "Thou art an ass, Pierre! An arrant ass!" said the Abbot, who wasconsiderably nettled at the freedom with which Pierre made a jest of himand his office. "Canst thou not see that after the Baron's death DeMontfort will soon be quit of us if we cannot checkmate him? To jestunder the gallows, and end it by swinging on them, is fool's work."

  "Well, well, I'll turn the matter over carefully, I think," said Pierrea little more soberly. "Your Grace has done it, and I think there issomething in it. I don't know how the sneaking method of doing things,after the dare-devil manner familiar to me, will suit my stomach. I havealways liked the chase better than the game, and I confess I wouldrather fight it through, come what may.

  "But," said he, bursting into a loud guffaw, as the ludicrousness of histurning monk thrust itself upon him, and relapsing again into thejocularity and bitter sarcastic tone familiar to him,--

  "Now that _you_ recommend it so strongly, I think I will retire from_active duties_, and grow fat and wheezy like yourself. Anyhow, itstands to reason, the bigger the paunch the more good sack wine it willhold, and that is an item. True, too, a lazy life and a lasciviousappetite are bound to go together. Less force to labour, and more tolechery; that's the sum of it. I think I come to't, your Reverence.Beshrew me! what would any man have? for if he lust lustily, and be ajolly trencherman to boot, with his fill provided to him, what can hewish for more? My hand on it, your Reverence! I'll undertake theventure. It is a mad hazard, but I like it none the worse for that!"

  "Then when wilt thou start on thine errand, Pierre? Time is precious.The Count knows I have possession of those letters, and, mark me, hewill circumvent us if he can."

  "Line my pocket with gold pieces and I'll start at cock crowing, and DeMontfort may catch me if he can, when once I get the start of him."

  Slowly at that instant the door opened behind them, and Oswald, Wulfhereand a couple of attendants, armed to the teeth, entered, and closed thedoor behind them, whilst one stout yeoman set his back against it. Thecountenance of Vigneau fell on the instant as though a sword had piercedhim, and he became
livid as death. Hastily clutching at the letterslying on the table, he endeavoured to thrust them into a recess of thecabinet, and he fairly cowered in abject terror before these strangevisitants. On the contrary, Pierre whipped out his broadsword, andfiercely stood at bay; his savage valour being in striking contrast tothe crouching cowardice of the Abbot.

  "Give place, master," said Wulfhere, advancing on Pierre; "this fellowis mine. You have already had your revenge. Now, blood-thirsty villain,"said he, addressing Pierre, "I told thee, did I not, that the time wouldcome when thou shouldest answer to me for thy cruelties and murders? thetime has come now; and thou canst no longer shirk the fate that has longawaited thee."

  "Did I ever shirk meeting thee, or any churlish Saxon in Britain? Giveme fair play, and I'll give thee a speedy passage to the devil, sirrah!"said Pierre savagely, striding towards Wulfhere.

  So the two stood upon their guard. The Abbot shrinking in mortal terrorin one corner, whilst Oswald and his followers looked on in anxioussuspense; for they knew well the strength and brutal valour of Pierre,who was ever foremost in any fray, and equally an adept at either strokeor thrust. Wulfhere also was second to none amongst the Saxon outlaws inskill and strength, or personal bravery. Toe to toe for a moment theystood eyeing each other with lips set, and mortal enmity in their eyes.Then stroke and thrust and parry followed each other in rapidsuccession. The rapid advancing or retiring, as each one gave orreceived a stroke, by these powerful gladiators, wrought the spectatorsto such a pitch of excitement that they held their breath almost tosuffocation. But the climax came in a totally unexpected manner.Wulfhere drove at his antagonist a powerful sweep of his sword, butPierre effectually interposed his sword and parried the blow. Such wasthe force of the blow, however, that the treacherous weapon flew in two,the point striking the opposite side of the room, and the hilt, withhalf the broken blade, remaining in Wulfhere's hand. Ere Oswald couldinterpose between them, Pierre shouted,--

  "Aha! Now I have you!" and rushed in with a furious lunge at Wulfhere'sbody.

  The words were true enough, but not in the sense in which Pierre haduttered them; for with lightning-like agility Wulfhere sprang aside, andthe glittering weapon slid harmlessly into the empty air beyond him. Soconfident, however, had Pierre been of the helplessness of his opponent,and so confident of the deadliness of his thrust, that he took noprecaution whatever of his own body. The eager rush also of his ownonslaught, coupled with the force with which Wulfhere drove the brokenblade at him, caused it to pass clean through his body, and, with agroan and a half-uttered oath, he fell forward on his face, dead.

  The Abbot, as he witnessed the close of the tragic scene, literallycrawled to the feet of Oswald, begging piteously for mercy. One of themen-at-arms who accompanied Oswald, advanced upon him, and said,--

  "Leave him to me, master. Now, dastardly fiend!" said he, addressing theAbbot, "there has come a reckoning day even for you. You remember thelittle cot out yonder befouled by your infamous presence. You know theboy murdered by you in cold blood, and waiting to be avenged until thishour. The time has come at last."

  "Have mercy upon me," moaned the Abbot, "and I will recompense youliberally. Take this gold chain," said he, removing a massive gold chainfrom his neck, "it is very valuable, and I will give thee more."

  "If you think a gold chain will recompense me for my dead child, basehound, you are greatly mistaken. His blood cries for vengeance, and Iwill exact it now."

  As he spoke he raised his sword, and at a blow he severed the Abbot'shead from his body.

  "This is most ghastly work," said Oswald, "and to be done within thesacred precincts of this edifice it is most deplorable. But surelyiniquities such as these men have constantly and unblushinglyperpetrated call for most drastic remedies. Men, gather up these bodies,and bury them deep in the woods before the dawn."

  The two men-at-arms called in some of their fellows who were watching inthe corridors outside, and, swathing the bodies in the Abbot's robes,they hurried along the corridors and out of the grounds, bearing theirghastly burden to secret burial in the forest.

  Oswald and Wulfhere remained behind engaged in diligent search.

  "There are certain documents possessed by this man which are of vastimportance to some one I would like to serve," said Oswald. "We mustfind them, if possible, ere we quit this place. I saw the Abbot hastilyremove some papers as we entered, as though he was exceedingly anxiousto conceal them. I strongly suspect they are the letters I would fainlay hands upon."

  So saying, he advanced to the cabinet, and throwing it open, almostimmediately drew forth the letters which had well-nigh had such direeffects upon the life and happiness of Alice De Montfort. Oswald gave anexclamation of pleased surprise as the seal of De Montfort caught hiseye, and, hastily unfolding them, he eagerly ran over their contents oneby one, and, as he gathered their import, he said to Wulfhere,--

  "These are indeed a treasure more precious than gold. They bear evidenceof one fatal mistake on the part of one whose astuteness is otherwisemarvellous; and they have been an instrument of terror to the author ofthem for a long time. Now this dread secret will henceforth be sealedfor ever. Sealed it is in the death of those who knew and used it sounscrupulously; and it will soon be sealed in the destruction of thesedocuments."

  So he hastily thrust them into his bosom, and they continued theirsearch. But nothing further that had any bearing upon the subject couldbe found.

  "Our work in this place is evidently at an end for the present," saidOswald. "So let us be gone, for I would finish this day's work. I wotthere are some who at this moment are in terrible suspense, and areawaiting in well-nigh mortal terror for the further development of thistragedy. So let us away, the night is still young, and there is a voiceeagerly calling for me."