Part 32 (1/2)
”Two difficulties safely past,” I whispered ”Now, Michael, have a great care and let not the soldier at the breach make the faintest sound”
”Oi'll do moy bist, sor,” and I felt sure he would Then we came to the short inner wall that runneth from the tower of St Thomas back unto the square tower that we had just left
As is ever the case, when one is in great haste, I tried every key but one depending froate re the lock When I caht of the possibility of the whole affair being a trap to raise my hopes in the belief that I was about to escape, and then to have the force My life depended on this key Would it turn back the bars and give me freedom and life, or would it, like the others, ed to know my fate, and yet dreaded the test, lest I should fail My hand shook as with palsy, and h impossible for me to insert the key Then 'twas in the lock; and still I did not turn it
Verily, I have faced the deadly cannon, oft, and yet have felt no anxiety nor fear But now, as I stood before that heavy gate, with the key already in the lock, requiring but a turn--that is if it did work--to set e did forsake me, and I really feared to turn the key
Some there are, I knoill say it was unmanly in me to thus hesitate Mine answer, in advance, is:--Let them but place themselves in the same position and see then how they will act It requires but little courage to tell what one would do; but it is different when one doth face the reality and not the arguhty effort, such as awith his shoulder in an atteth of spirit, and exerted pressure on the key Thank Heaven, it turned! I would have cheered with delight had not the plain warning of the letter reate open and passed beneath the arch I was about to push on and leave the gate open behind, but Michael, who seemed less disturbed than was I--but then he had not been confined within the Tower for long weeks--whispered:--
”Beg pardon, sor, but dount ye think 'twould be safer to lock the gate agin? They reat care I closed and locked the gate Then, stealing slowly, as doth the fox, along the wall, we in time reached the shadow of St
Thomas tower It was so dark here that I could scarce see Michael; for noas past the hour ofher head upon the lap of earth, casting long, black shadows as she sank into her sleep
How I cursed
Then ht the sentry near which ere noingchallenge Back and forth he paced eary, clanking steps, unconscious of the two dark forh breathlessly, towards hiainst the wall, as he halted alth before us Verily, his eyes must have been closed in partial sleep, or he had seen us Then he trah he had been fastened to a cord which perth and then warned him to return
At that moment I attempted to draw back still further My spur struck the ith a sharp click, and this did cause ainst the stones
The soldier turned like a flash of light, and brought his axe froe when Michael, forcing the axe's point above his head, clapped hisno sound to escape
I seized the axe, lest it should fall and rouse the guard
”Be quoiet, thou fool, and no harm 'll come unto thee,” whispered Michael in the fellow's ear, as he held hiround
With haste I searched me for my scarf
”It's here, sor, about moy hand; jist untoie it, playze sor Sure a little blood 'll do thee no harm Thou shouldst thank the Lord that it isn't thoine own” This to the sentry
When he had been made fast at both hands and feet, the which we bound with his belt, after cutting the leather into two strings, and when he had been securely gagged with the scarf, we carried him and placed him close to the wall, and then I warned him
”Now, sirrah, if thou dost lie still and make no attempt to free thyself, or to attract attention, thou shalt not be mistreated But, by all the fiends, if thou dost make a movement thou shalt be ripped from ear to ear, and then thrown into the moat We shall be near at hand, and any sound from thee must reach us”
Then we proceeded to the breach with less care than we had hitherto used Here the as torn away until but a foot in height remained
The artisan's tools were laid upon this loall, and ell nigh the cause of our ruin; for just as I made a move to cross the breach my foot struck upon the pile of tools and almost caused them all to fall into the moat Carefully we removed them from our way, and then we descended into the water
I had never before attempted to shile dressed in a complete suit of heavy armour; and much therefore did I doubt mine ability to do so now
”Didst thou ever swim across water, whilst dressed in thine armour?” I asked of Michael
”Divil a toime, yer honour”
”It will be difficult, Michael, and I may be coht, yer honour” And we set out