A
All this seemed incredible and yet a little reflection convinced Major Starland that the sagacious native was right. The American had two treacherous enemies to meet in the Dictators who professed to be his friends.
“I will go back to Atlamalco; I will call the dog to account; what will he dare say for himself?”
“I am sure,” observed the soft-voiced Captain, “that Major Starland will not be so unwise as that.”
“Why will it be unwise?”
“General Yozarro will not see you when you return.”
“He dare not refuse! I will bring up my yacht and lay his confounded town under tribute.”
“He has a gunboat.”
“All you folks refer to that tub as a gunboat, when it is only an old tug, which he haspainted over and fitted up with a couple of six-pounders. It is not worth taking into consideration: I will force myself into his presence and compel him to undo what he has done and to beg my pardon on his knees.”
The Captain indulged in his expressive shrug and smoked in silence. He was giving the American a few minutes in which to regain his poise. The American did so.
“Why did Martella leave his service?” he abruptly asked.
“General Yozarro caused his brother to be shot, because he ran the gunboat aground the other day. It was upon a mound formed under water one night by the forked river, which no one could see. The boat was not injured, but he shot Martella’s brother, who was the pilot. Martella, therefore, hates him.”
“No more than I do. Had I known what you have told me when talking with him this forenoon, I should have put a bullet through his carcass.”
“There are better ways than that; let us go to the home of General Yozarro in the mountains and bring away the Señorita; Martella will go with us.”
“He will be shot as a deserter if taken prisoner.”
“He won’t be taken prisoner; perhaps, too, he may gain the chance to slay General Yozarro; it will delight his heart if he can do so.”
“No more than it will delight mine; talk with him, Captain; if he will help me through with this business, he will never regret it.”
Captain Guzman made his way past the sail to the bow where the native was sitting, gazing thoughtfully back over the stream they were leaving behind them. He turned his head as his friend approached, and the two talked in low tones, both seemingly calm, though each was stirred by strong emotion. Then the Captain came back to the American, who, with his hand on the tiller, was holding the boat to her course. He ran in quite close to the southern shore and was studying the Rubio Mountains, whose craggy crests were visible in the sky throughout the whole voyage between the capitals of the republics. He was consumed with resentment that anyone had dared to hold the daughter of an American citizen a guest without her consent,—in other words a prisoner, as if she were a criminal.Manifestly there was a “sovereign remedy” for all this. The great United States Government would not permit the outrage, and any wrong done to one of its people would cost the miserable offender dear.
But the leading Republic of the world lay many leagues to the northward. It would take weeks to bring a naval vessel thence, and certainly a number of days before one could come from the nearest port. Meanwhile, the hours were of measureless value. The Major ground his teeth when he thought he had allowed his yacht to pass down the river to San Luis, with the understanding that she need not return for several days. There was no way, however, of getting word to Captain Winton, who could not suspect the urgent necessity for his presence in this part of the land of abominations.
“Martella will be glad to go with us; he says we should go ashore just this side of the point of land ahead.”
“He doesn’t seem to have any weapons with him,” remarked the Major, scrutinizing the fellow, who was looking at him with a curiously intent expression.
“He could not bring his musket, but he hasa knife under his coat, and none knows better how to use it.”
“Bring him here.”
Guzman motioned to his friend, who rose to his feet, touching a forefinger to the front of his sombrero, and skilfully picked his course along the careening boat.
“Take the tiller for a few minutes, Captain.”
The moment Martella came within reach, the American extended his hand and addressed him in his native tongue:
“The Captain says you are ready to show us the way toCastillo Descanso, where Señoritas Estacardo and Starland are staying.”
Martella nodded his head several times and said eagerly, “Si, si, si.”
“Are you certain they are there?”
“I am not, but I think so.”
“The deuce! Captain, I thought you said he was certain.”
“So he is,—as certain as one can be; he saw them go ashore last night and start inland under the escort of two soldiers, and heard them say they were going toCastillo Descanso; isn’t that true, Martella?”
“It is true, but perhaps they did not arrive there.”
“Oh, hang it!—that is as near right as one can be. Show the Captain where to direct the boat and we’ll soon set things humming.”
Martella pointed out the spot, and Guzman, who was an expert navigator, turned the prow inward, while the Major lowered the sail, and they rounded to at a place where all were able to leap ashore dry shod. The craft was carefully made fast, and leaving what slight luggage they had behind, they were ready to press inland without loss of time. The leader carried his rifle and belt full of cartridges and his revolver; the Captain his revolver, while the private was armed only with a long frightful knife, which he kept, so far as possible, out of sight under his jacket.
Standing beside one another for a minute or two, the American asked his guide:
“Did General Yozarro start for this point when he left Atlamalco in his tug?”
“I heard him say he intended to take the Señorita to Zalapata to meet her brother, and Señorita Estacardo went along to bear her company.”
“That’s what the villain toldme; did he pass beyond this point?”
“He did so for several miles.”
“What cause did he give for turning back?”
“He said war was about to break out between the republics; I heard that much, but I was one of the firemen and could not hear all; he said afterward that he discovered something ahead which caused him to turn back in haste.”
“What was it?”
“Nothing, for there was nothing to see.”
“He planned it from the first to deceive the Señoritas.”
“You speak the truth, but why should he take the pains to do that, when he might have gone overland and made the halt in the mountains?”
It was Captain Guzman who answered:
“Such a journey would have been long and hard for the Señoritas; the voyage is far more pleasant.”
“Why did he start at night?”
“It was easier for him to see the dangerwhich was not there, or for him to make the Señoritas believe he saw it.”
“General Yozarro is devilish sly; let us go.”
S
Since every one in tropical America called Warrenia Rowland by the surname of Major Jack Starland and the two were accepted as brother and sister we will do the same for the present, and thus avoid possible confusion.
These two had been on the Forked River but a short time, when they awoke to a most unpleasant fact, in addition to that which has already been mentioned. While the climate was wholesome enough to those accustomed to it, it was highly dangerous to visitors. The air was damp, oppressive and miasmatic, probably because of the rank vegetation that grew everywhere. Still further, the insect pests were intolerable at times. Several cases of illness among the crew of the yacht, though fortunately none was fatal, alarmed Aunt Cynthia and caused some uneasiness on the part of Major Starland, as well as of Captain Winton. In the circumstances, theMajor felt warranted in urging the plea of business as a legitimate one for haste in leaving the detestable country.
It has been intimated that after Miss Starland had been delivered over to her dearest friend, the yacht dropped down the river to Zalapata, and left Jack there. Captain Winton, who was a cousin of Aunt Cynthia, intended to steam some twenty miles farther eastward to the city of San Luis, where a few needed supplies would be taken aboard. Then the boat would return to Zalapata for its owner, and continue on to Atlamalco, there to receive the young woman for the homeward voyage.
Major Jack Starland was considerate enough to decide to remain most of the time at the capital of General Bambos, knowing the school mates would wish to devote the all too-brief period to each other. Consequently he would only be in the way. The Major gave no specific instructions to Captain Winton, but left much to his discretion. It was intimated to him that he might return to Atlamalco in the course of a few days,—an elastic term which might be halved or doubled without any blame attaching to the skipper.
General Bambos was delighted for the time with the companionship of a man who had received the thorough military training of his visitor. Ignorant as most of the prominent South Americans are, the majority have heard of West Point, and all know something of the courage and achievements of the greatest nation in all the world. The General consulted often with his guest and Major Starland never did, or rather never attempted to do, a more praiseworthy thing than when he strove to impress upon the bulky Dictator the folly and crime of war.
“It was truthfully characterized by our General Sherman as ‘hell’; it has been the curse of the ages and brought misery and death to millions, besides turning back the hands on the dial of progress for centuries. Shun it as you would the pestilence that stalks at noonday.”
Such discourse is thrown away upon the South American leader to whom revolutions are as the breath of his life. General Bambos blandly smiled and cordially agreed with the wise sentiments, but laid the blame eternally on the other fellow. Ifhewould only do that which is just, wars would cease andblessed peace would brood forever over all nations and peoples.
Major Starland took another tack. There had been hostilities between Zalapata and Atlamalco in the past, with no special advantage accruing to either side. On the whole perhaps the latter Republic had been the gainer, since the last treaty ceded to General Yozarro a small strip of territory on whichCastillo Descansostood, the same having been a bone of contention for a long time.
The purchase of a tugboat by General Yozarro had unquestionably tipped the scales in his favor. The American did his best to show Bambos this fact and to warn him that in case of another war between the republics, Zalapata was sure to be the chief sufferer. Bambos could not gainsay this and he was now seeking to balance things, by floating a loan which was to be used in arming his troops with modern weapons. He made a tempting offer to Major Starland to enter his service, agreeing to pay him an enormous salary in gold, though one might well question where he was to obtain a fractional part of it, and to place him in supreme command of the military forces of the Republic.
While the American was illimitably the superior in mentality to the gross Dictator, he failed to perceive an important truth, which did not become clear to him until after his plain talk with Captain Guzman. The great object of the obese nuisance in warring against Yozarro was to place Miss Starland under deep obligations to him, though he was too cunning to intimate anything of that nature. When Jack Starland kindly but firmly declined his offer, he feared that he would become an obstacle to his scheme; and although he hid any such feeling, he would have been glad to have him disappear from the stage of action. What galled Bambos was the fact that the American lady was the guest of his rival, who he knew would do his utmost to woo and win her. To bring to naught anything of that nature, he determined to wage war against Yozarro and shatter the opportunity that fortune had placed in the hands of that detested individual. It cannot be said that the logic of Bambos was of the best, but it must be remembered that the gentle passion plays the mischief with numskulls as well as with men of wisdom.
Such in brief was the situation, when MajorJack Starland yielded to his growing unrest over the visit of his sister to her friend. He had learned that General Yozarro was a widower—though as in the case of Bambos that would have made little difference in his wayward promptings—and he decided that it would be well to shorten the visit of Miss Starland or to bear her company, so long as she stayed in Atlamalco. He would be welcomed by the young women themselves, and, although Yozarro might wish him to the uttermost parts of the earth, he, too, would be gracious. So the sail of the American and Captain Guzman up the forked river becomes clear to the reader.
Never was mortal man more infatuated with woman than was General Yozarro, from the moment he first laid eyes on the “Flower of the North,” as he poetically named her. His passion was too absorbing to be concealed, and in the sanctity of their apartments the niece rallied her friend on the conquest she had made.
“But it is the very one I do not wish to make,” protested the annoyed American; “I like General Yozarro, chiefly because he isyour relative, but absolutely my feeling can never go beyond that.”
“I thought your heart had not wandered elsewhere.”
“It has not, and it can never pass to him, my dear Manuela.”
“May I not say that you might go farther and fare worse? He is one of the kindest-hearted of men, is wealthy and would always be your slave.”
“You name the very quality I cannot tolerate in the one whom I love; I care nothing for wealth, for I do not need it; I want no man to be my slave, and I shall never marry any one who is not an American like myself.”
“But many of your young women marry titles abroad.”
“And too often hate themselves afterward for doing so. Misery and wretchedness generally follow, for there is something unnatural in such a union, with nothing of love on either side. Then, too, your uncle is double my age, and it is impossible—utterly impossible for me to return any affection on his part, if it really exists.”
“There can be no doubt ofthat,” replied the impulsive Atlamalcan, throwing her armsaround her friend and affectionately kissing her. “Be assured I shall never urge you to do anything contrary to your own pure nature. More than that, I shall take the first opportunity to impress upon General Yozarro the hopelessness of any love he may feel toward you.”
“That is just like your true self!” exclaimed the American, returning the ardent caresses of her friend; “my stay with you is to be too brief to allow any such cloud to come between us. Much as I hate to cause you distress, Manuela, I shall not stay another day if he persists in forcing his attentions upon me.”
“Have no fear of that. He is too good, too considerate, too honorable to bring pain to any one. He will be grieved when I tell him the truth, as I shall lose no time in doing, and will hasten to repair the injustice. So let us kiss again, and say and think no more about it.”
True to her promise, Señorita Estacardo took the first occasion to explain frankly the situation to her uncle. He listened thoughtfully, admitted his grief that his new-born hope should be crushed, but declared he wouldaccept the facts like an honorable man and take every pains that their visitor should not be annoyed in any way by him.
Nothing could have been more delightful than the few days that followed. General Yozarro took his niece and her friend on several voyages down the Rio Rubio, and far enough westward to give her glimpses of the magnificent fauna and flora of that interesting region. There were times when the exuberance of vegetation and foliage, the sweep of the mighty waters, and the superabundance of animal life filled her with awe and a certain fear, but her wonder never abated. The guns on the craft were fired several times for her entertainment, but the General prudently refrained from pointing out the target until he had made sure where the missile had struck, when he found no difficulty in doing so.
No knight of the Crusades could have been more attentive to her slightest wish. Indeed he was so gracious and thoughtful that she felt at times a certain compunction. She wished she could give her affection to one who possessed so many admirable qualities, butcompressing her lips, she shook her head and said again and again: “It can never be.”
Now and then spots showed on the sun. She caught glimpses of the volcano-like nature of the man, when some of the crew or his people displeased him. She was horrified to overhear some words which made known the shooting of the brother of Martella for a trifling fault, and she learned, too, of Yozarro’s ferocious cruelties to others, including some who had been taken prisoners in honorable warfare. Underneath that suave, smiling exterior lurked Satan himself.
T
But the fly was still in the ointment. General Yozarro showed in innumerable ways that his passion swayed him more absolutely, if possible, than before. It appeared in the touch of his hand when assisting Miss Starland to mount or alight from her horse on which she rode with her friends through the picturesque country that surrounded the capital,—in the glance of his ardent black eyes, in the sigh which he pretended to try to keep from her, and in the many hints which he dropped of his lonely life since the death of his wife. The young woman could not touch upon these themes, lest he accept it as encouragement; so she contented herself with parrying them. She began to long for the time when she should turn her back upon Atlamalco forever.
On a certain balmy forenoon, General Yozarro, his niece and Miss Starland rode out from the town and over the trail leading intothe Rubio Mountains. They were on their way toCastillo Descanso, which had been the cause of much fighting between the republics, and which had finally fallen into the possession of the Dictator of Atlamalco. It was a considerable way in the mountains and stood upon an elevation that brought it out in clear view from the capital.
“It is fully three centuries old,” explained Señorita Estacardo to her friend, “and is unlike anything I have ever seen in this part of the world. I suppose there are plenty of similar buildings along the Rhine and perhaps on your own Hudson, which has been called the Rhine of America.”
“How came it to be built?”
“I can only repeat the legends that have come down to us. Some great pirate or general of Spain or Portugal—I don’t know which—came up the river in quest of gold mines of which he had heard stories from the natives. You know that the first Spaniards who crossed the ocean to our continent cared more for gold than any or everything else, and stopped at no crimes to obtain it.”
“That was the case with many other nations.”
“Well, this buccaneer landed his crew here and tramped inland to the mountains, where the gold was reported to be. He took with him several hundred native prisoners to work the mines. He is said to have been very successful, and while his slaves were digging in the mountains, he set many others to work building him a home.
“Oh, there was no element of romance lacking, for he brought with him a young and beautiful bride and it was for her that the Castle was built. He must have learned from Columbus, Balboa, Pizarro and the other early explorers that the worm sometimes turns and that it was wise for him to make his position safe against any revolt of the Indians. So the house which you are about to visit was put up. It is of solid stone and three stories high,—something almost unknown in an earthquake country like ours.”
“But what became of this fine old gentleman?”
“I declare I forgot that. He lived there for years and then found that the danger against which he had made such full preparations was not the one that threatened him. The natives did not revolt, though why theydid not I do not understand, for he treated them like beasts of burden and killed many in mere wantonness. It was his own men who rose against him. They had gathered a great deal of gold, but grew homesick. They hated the country and begged him again and again to leave or allow them to go, since they had enough wealth for all. He swore that not one should depart till the store of gold was increased ten-fold. Then, and not until then, would he weigh anchor, spread sail and pass down the river to the ocean and so homeward.
“Well, although I suppose the men were able to gather more gold, it is not to be supposed they could have gotten as much as he wished. So they took the shortest way to close up the business. They killed the captain and his bride, carried aboard ship all the wealth they had collected, set sail and passed out from further chronicle. What do you think of the story, Warrenia?”
“It has the true flavor and makes me anxious to look through the Castle.”
General Yozarro, who was riding in advance along the narrow trail, and listening to the words of his niece at the rear, called over his shoulder:
“That privilege shall be yours in a brief time, Miss Starland; I am glad you are interested.”
“How could any one help it? Is the Castle yours, General?”
“Yes; it may be said to be a part of the spoils of war. The boundary line between Atlamalco and Zalapata runs through these mountains, but its precise course has never been defined. The Castle rightfully belonged to Atlamalco, but General Bambos claimed that it stood on his territory. Since he was deaf to argument and reason nothing remained but to refer it to the arbitrament of arms, with the result that General Bambos is quite sure not to open the dispute again.”
“Did those visitors of the long ago take away all the gold in the mountains?”
“That is quite impossible.”
“Why doyounot dig or mine for what is left?”
“I have thought of that, but it seems wise to wait until I gain some one to share my lonely life with me.”
“Would it not be more considerate to finish the work before that time, so that you both will be at leisure to enjoy it? How muchbetter than waging war with your neighbors!”
“I have sufficient gold for me and mine. You mean it would be better for my neighbors to refrain from waging war against me. I made a religious vow long since never to go to war except in the defence of my rights, and that you know is one’s solemn duty.”
It was the same old argument that General Bambos had used in discussing the question with Major Jack Starland.
The young woman made no reply, for she saw it would be useless, and her escort added:
“Your counsel is good, Miss Starland, but suppose General Bambos should construe such action on my part as unfriendly?”
“Surely he cannot do so, unless you enter his territory, and that I am sure you have no thought of doing.”
“You know not the perfidy of that man,” was the commentary of the Dictator, his words inspired by jealousy.
When the Castle of Rest was reached it justified all that Señorita Estacardo had said of it, though it lacked moat and drawbridge and the other feudal accessories. It was of massive rock and stone, sixty or more feet inlength and almost as broad. The lowest floor consisted of two large rooms, with broad openings instead of doors, rough and unfurnished and with walls several feet in thickness. At the time of its building, it would have resisted any armament that could have been brought to bear against it. The crevices between the stones throughout the structure had been filled with clay or adobe, which in the course of centuries had hardened to the consistency of rock itself. The second and third stories contained each four apartments, whose walls were of less thickness, but the whole constituted a veritable Gibraltar. Sloping stone steps connected each story, but only the rooms of the second contained anything in the nature of furniture.
It was evident that General Yozarro had given this portion recent attention, for the windows, tall, narrow and paneless, had been screened by netting with the finest of meshes, though none can be fine enough to wholly exclude the infinitesimal insects like the coloradilla, or red flea, whose bite is as the point of a red hot needle, the sand fly, and other devilish insects beyond enumeration. Matting was spread on the smooth stone floors,there were imported chairs of costly make, stands, a bureau and much of what constitutes the appointments of a modern residence in a tropical country. The doors were made of a species of wood, beautifully carved, but showing no effects of the tooth of time, except in the gray faded color, for paint had never touched them. They were powerful enough to defy a battering ram, fitted with enormous locks and heavy bars that could be slipped into the massive iron receptacles.
“Had that old buccaneer been given notice of the attack by his men,” said Miss Starland, when the building had been inspected from top to bottom, “he might have shut himself in one of these rooms and bade them do their worst.”
“Perhaps he did,” suggested General Yozarro.
“And yet the legend says he fell.”
“Starvation and thirst are enemies to whom the bravest must surrender.”
“It looks, General, as if you had been rejuvenating this fine old Castle.”
“I have done so to a certain extent in honor of your coming. Besides I thought my niecewould find a stay here pleasant during the oppressive weather and I prepared it partly for her. You observe how much cooler it is here than in the capital.”
A
All had observed this fact which was natural. The elevation of the structure, which was open to every breeze that fluttered through the mountains, made it one of the most comfortable places in that part of the world. Another thing had been noted by the young women. Two armed sentinels were pacing outside, and two more came forward from the lower apartments and saluted the General and his party. They relieved one another at regular intervals, and three of them had their wives domiciled on the second floor. These were slatterns, not wholly lacking in a certain comeliness, and eyed the visitors with shy curiosity. The latter spoke to them in Spanish, to which they smiled and replied in soft, awed monosyllables, and respectfully watched the movements of the young women.
General Yozarro descended the lower stairs, leaving his young friends on the second floor,where they lingered a few minutes to admire the view from the windows. The broad, wooded plain, stretching to the verge of vision, the town nestling in the lowlands a few miles away, the sweep of the river, and the cloudless blue sky formed a picture that would always linger in the memory of all whose privilege it was to look upon them.
The two turned to descend the steps, when the Señorita missed one of her gloves. Hurriedly glancing about her, she said:
“I must have dropped it in the story above; I’ll run up and search, while you may find it below or on the outside.”
She darted off like a bird, and Miss Starland moved down the sloping steps which gave back not the slightest sound. The female servants had preceded her, so that for a brief time she was alone. She reached the lower floor, and was passing through the opening leading out doors, when she heard some one speaking in a low, but excited voice. She paused and discovered that he was swearing frightfully, the passion of the speaker being the more fearful because of the repression of the tones. With a shock which cannot be described, she recognized the voice as GeneralYozarro’s, and, more shameful than all, he was addressing one of the women.
In her distress, and determined not to hear the words, Miss Starland softly ran up the steps and was looking through the rooms again for the missing glove, when her friend, with a glowing smile, came down holding it up in her hand. Both laughed over the insignificant incident, and Miss Starland took care as they descended that her own merriment continued. General Yozarro, thus warned, finished his imprecations, and met them with his usual smiles and graciousness. In his snowy suit, sombrero in hand, he was the acme of cool politeness and courtesy. Had not Miss Starland identified his voice unmistakably, she could not have believed what her ears had told her.
That one revelation, however, did its work. She was resolved to leave Atlamalco on the first opportunity and never to set foot within the Republic again. She had come to look upon this man with a mortal horror, for, under the mask of chivalry, he carried the blackest of hearts.
The return ride was trying to the last degree. General Yozarro seemed to have forgottenhis promise to his niece, and tortured her friend with attentions which filled her with resentment. When he assisted her to dismount, he pressed her hand for an instant until the rings on her fingers dented the flesh and almost caused her to cry out with pain. He uttered endearing expressions in a voice so low that no ears except those for which they were intended heard them, and they gave no heed. Her friend seemed to see nothing of all this, though she must have been aware of it.
The irrepressible lover, more hopelessly enmeshed than ever, insisted upon their visitor sitting with him and his niece on the piazza in the moonlight, but in desperation, she pleaded a headache—when she had never suffered therefrom—and kept her room.
“And Jack never dreams of anything of this kind,” was her thought; “he is only a few miles away, and I shall insist that I be taken to him on the morrow.”
Having made her resolution, she carried it out. At the table, which was set in the large back room of General Yozarro’s city house, and provided with the choicest fruits and every delicacy that the fertile republic couldfurnish, she made known her wish. She longed to see her brother on an important matter, and begged that she might be taken to him with the least possible delay. The others expressed their regret, and the General offered to send for her relative.
“The one who goes to take the message can as well take me along,” said she, determined to force the point.
“Do you expect to remain with him long?” inquired the General.
“I know of nothing to prevent our coming back quite soon.”
“Your wish is my command; I shall be very busy today on important matters. Suppose we take the ride to Zalapata on my gunboat this evening?”
“That will be delightful!” exclaimed the niece, and though it was not the exact arrangement her friend wished, she could offer no objection and it was so agreed.
Thus it came to pass that theGeneral Yozarrosteamed past Major Jack Starland and Captain Guzman, while the two sat smoking in front of the native’s hut on the northern shore of the Rio Rubio, without either party suspecting how near they were to each other.
The long day gave General Yozarro abundant time to perfect his schemes which were carried out with precision and a faultless nicety of detail.
Two miles beyond the hut, while the young women were partaking of refreshments in the Captain’s room, which had been specially fitted for their reception, he came to them in great agitation.
“I have just discovered that General Bambos has obtained a boat somewhere and is descending the river with the undoubted purpose of attacking Atlamalco.”
“Let us hasten back ahead of him,” said his startled niece, who like her friend was in dismay over the tidings.
“It will never do to flee before him; he must be kept from reaching our capital; a battle with him is a necessity.”
“With us on board?”
“I do not see how it can be helped—but hold! I will land you here and send you toCastillo Descanso, where you will be beyond all harm. Ah! that is it! That is it!”
T
The tug rounded to and approached the shore so close that by running out the gangplank, the young women were readily assisted to land. They were nervously eager, for there was no saying when the hostile craft would appear and open fire, since its crew and leader must be unaware of the presence of the noncombatants.
General Yozarro could not have been more thoughtful. He was profuse in his regrets because it was necessary to subject them to this inconvenience, and he assured both over and over again that everything would be done for their comfort.
“You know the Castle is prepared for your stay, which I hope will be brief; I shall see that nothing is neglected and you will hear from me tomorrow.”
The three were standing for a minute or two on the bank, having but little luggage totake with them, since, when they left Atlamalco nothing like this had been dreamed of by the two.
“But, General,” said the Señorita, “it is a mile to the Castle; how are we to reach there alone and at night?”
Before he answered, two men came silently out of the gloomy wood. They were in the uniform of soldiers, and one of them, saluting, said:
“General, we have the horses saddled and waiting.”
“That is fortunate; I will assist you to mount.”
This time he did not press the hand of Miss Starland, when with his slight help, she vaulted into the saddle, nor did he sigh or give expression to anything sentimental. The time was too critical for anything like that. He waved them farewell, hurried aboard over the plank, which was quickly drawn in, and the screw of the tugboat began churning the muddy water, as she circled slowly about and headed up stream.
The young women, being mounted, looked apprehensively out over the moonlit stream, expecting and dreading the coming of theother boat which was to fire the opening gun of another senseless and vicious conflict between the peppery republics. The situation, however, was too dangerous for them to wait more than a few minutes, and one of the soldiers, doffing his sombrero, spoke with the utmost deference:
“I will lead the way and your horse will follow. My comrade will walk at the rear; be assured there is no danger.”
Each man carried a musket and the one who had spoken turned inland. The horse of the American followed, the gait of all being the ordinary walk. The Señorita was only a few steps behind her, while the second soldier silently stalked at the rear. The American noticed that they were following a clearly marked path or trail, which soon began descending, then climbed upward, and wound around and between rocks, the gloom in some places being so deep that she caught only shadowy glimpses of the guide in front, as he plodded onward like one familiar with his course. At times there were openings where the light was like that at mid-day. She might well have trembled had not her animal been sure-footed, for they had penetrated no morethan a few hundred yards, when the little procession began threading along the face of a mass of rocks, where the path was so narrow that she felt the swish of her skirts against the mountain wall, and on her right it sloped downward perpendicularly, until what seemed a bottomless pit was hidden in a pool of gloom. A misstep by any member of the party would have sent him or her to instant destruction. But the animals and men moved confidently, though the pace was slow. Evidently, with the exception of the women, all were familiar, not only with this method of traveling, but with this particular route.
As soon as our friends had become accustomed to the work, the thoughts of both reverted to the river, and they listened with shrinking foreboding for the sound of the guns that would mark the opening of the fight between the two craft. General Yozarro had declared that he would not permit the boat of his enemy to reach the capital, and he intimated that as soon as he was released from the care of the ladies, he would be quick to open the naval battle.
“He steamed up stream,” reflected Miss Starland, “but he will not go far; he is seekinga favorable position near by and the conflict will be a fierce one.”
But the minutes passed and the silence was unbroken. Naught but the myriad voices of the jungle thrummed into her ears and she found herself wondering what the explanation of the continued silence could be. Had General Yozarro changed his mind and hastened to his capital, with the decision to offer defence there? She could not believe it. It seemed more probable that he had hurried down the river toward Zalapata to meet his antagonist, who may have turned and fled to his own town. Even this looked unlikely, but it was the only explanation that presented itself. She would have liked to converse with her friend, but the circumstances were unfavorable. The continual shifting of conditions compelled her to keep a firm seat and rein and to watch every step of her horse.
As the minutes passed and they penetrated farther into the interior, without hearing the boom of the gun, a disquieting question forced itself upon her. How did it come about that when she and her friend were put ashore, two soldiers were awaiting them, with properly saddled animals? It could not have been accidentor coincidence. They must have been there by order of General Yozarro, who intended from the first that the landing should be made. No other theory was reasonable. Had any doubt lingered, it would have been removed by the silence of the armed craft.
This question inevitably suggested the other as to the reason why General Yozarro had adopted so extraordinary a policy. Had he wished to send the two to the Castle, there was not the shadow of a difficulty in doing so, by the simplest and most direct means. As we know, they had already visited the gloomy building and would not have hesitated to accompany him again. Why all this mystery of landing them from the boat at night and sending them into the mountains in charge of two of his soldiers?
The thoughts that thronged upon the American were too perplexing for solution, and she resolutely put them away for a more convenient season. When she and her comrade could sit down and talk in quietude, they might formulate the explanation which at present was beyond reach.
One resolution, however, had crystallized: she would lose no time or opportunity in gettingbeyond the domain of General Yozarro and would never again willingly enter it. She had had more than enough of Zalapata as well as Atlamalco, and yearned for the return of Jack’s yacht, when they could flit from a country which she had come to detest unutterably. She dearly loved Manuela and could not reconcile herself to the thought of losing her companionship forever; but from this time forward, the American must voyage to the country which had been her home for years, and where she could be assured of respectful treatment.