The rattling of a handful of tiny pebbles took Mark Eden to his window
that morning--for it was beginning to grow grey in the east when he went
to his bed, Sir Edward insisting upon his going, and announcing that he
was going to keep watch with three men.
Mark pleaded for permission to join in the vigil, but Sir Edward firmly
ordered him to go and take proper rest; so he went, feeling that after
such an exciting time sleep would be impossible, and going off directly
into a deep dreamless slumber, from which he was awakened by that shower
of pebbles.
He threw open the casement, fully expecting to find that he had been
summoned to help defend the place from a fresh attack; but only saw
Dummy Rugg below in the yard, waving his arms to him.
"Dress yourself and come down, Master Mark," cried Dummy, in a hoarse
whisper, uttered between his hands. "What is it--the enemy?"
"Yes," said Dummy, nodding his head a great deal. "He wants to see
you."
"Me or my father?"
"You," whispered Dummy mysteriously. "Look sharp."
Mark did look as sharp as he could, hurriedly washing and dressing,
while still feeling stupid and thick with sleep.
As he went down he saw one of the servants, and asked for Sir Edward,
but learned that his father had not long gone to his chamber.
He went out of the battered hall-door, looked round at the shivered
casements and the walls blackened and whitened by the powder blast, and
then hurried through the gateway into the outer court.
But Dummy was not there now, so he passed through and saw the boy
waiting at the entrance of the gateway which had protected the bridge so
poorly on the previous night.
"Where is he?" cried Mark.
"Bit o' the way down the path," was the reply.
"Is it Captain Purlrose?" asked Mark.
"Yah! No, not him. T'other enemy."
"What enemy? Whom do you mean?"
"Him you hate so. Young Ralph Darley."
"Here?" cried Mark in astonishment.
"Yes; I see him coming up, and was going to heave a big stone down on
him, but he threw up his hands, and called out as he wanted you."
"Why, what can he want?" cried Mark, flushing with fresh excitement.
"I dunno, but it's some mischief, or a Darley wouldn't have come. You
be on the look out: he's got his sword. I'll come with you and let him
have my pick if he means anything again' you. He's heard of the
fighting, and thinks we're beat; so just you look out."
"You stop here," said Mark sharply, for he felt that this must be an
advance toward friendship on the part of the Darleys--that on hearing of
the attack Sir Morton had sent his son as an ambassador, to offer to
join Sir Edward Eden in an expedition to crush their mutual foe.
"Stop here, Master Mark, and let you go into danger," cried Dummy. "I
won't!"
"Stop here, sir! How dare you!" cried Mark. "Do you think that I
cannot defend myself against a boy like that?"
"He's as big a boy as you are, Master Mark, and I won't let you go
alone."
"Dummy, you're an insolent dog," cried Mark haughtily. "Keep your
place, sir, or I'll never go down the mine with you again."
"Oh, very well," said the boy sulkily, "but if he cuts your head off,
don't come and howl about it to me after it's done."
"I promise you I won't," cried Mark.
"And I shall climb up yonder and watch you, Master Mark; and if he kills
you I'll follow him till I get him, and I'll take him and heave him down
that big hole in the mine, where the water falls."
Mark hardly heard this, for he was hurrying over the bridge, followed by
Dummy, who, as his young master went down the zigzag path, began to
climb up to where he could keep watch, a sentry being higher still,
where he could command the approaches to the Tor Castle.
At the bottom of the third slope, Mark came upon Ralph, who was
approaching to meet him, and at a glance he saw that something terrible
had happened, for the lad's face was haggard and wild. There were
smears of blood about his temples, while his face looked as if it had
been washed, and some injury had bled again. In addition, a closer
inspection showed that his hair had been singed off on one side, while
the other was matted by dry blood.
"Why, hullo! Have you been in the wars too?"
"Help!" cried the lad, holding out his hands to him imploringly.
"Help? You come to me!" said Mark wonderingly.
"Yes, to you, mine enemy," cried Ralph, with a wild hysterical cry. "I
am humbled now--there is no one else to go to. Oh, for pity's sake,
help!"
He covered his face with his hands in his shame and agony, feeling that
his manhood had gone out of him, and Mark felt that something terrible
must have occurred, for a burst of hysterical sobbing escaped from the
wounded lad, and he threw himself face downward upon the path.
For a moment shame and contempt reigned in Mark Eden's breast, but they
were chased away by a manly feeling of pity for the enemy who seemed to
be humbling himself so before him.
Then all selfishness passed away in turn, and the word enemy dropped out
of his being as the true English boy shone out of his eyes in compassion
for a lad who had evidently passed through some terrible experience.
"I say! Darley," he said gently, "don't go on like that. I know,
though I don't like you, that you are a brave lad, and it hurts me to
see you so. There's a sentry up yonder, and our boy, Dummy. Don't let
them see you cry. It's like a woman."
Ralph sprang to his feet, with his face distorted, and his eyes flashing
wildly.
"Yes," he cried fiercely, "like a weak, pitiful girl; but I couldn't
keep it back. If it had not come I should have gone mad, for my head
felt as if it was on fire. That's past now, and I can talk. You see
how I am, I have come to you and your father--to you Edens, our
enemies--to ask you by all that is holy, by all that's manly, to help
me."
He stopped, panting, and trying to speak, but the words would not come;
he was choking. The blood seemed to rush to his temples so that the
veins stood out, and he reeled and would have fallen had not Mark
caught, supported him, and lowered him down upon the rocky path.
Then looking up, he shouted to Dummy.
"Fetch two men here--quick!" he cried.
Dummy disappeared, and Mark knelt down and unfastened the neck of the
lad's doublet, and saw that his head had received a bad cut, for the cap
had fallen off, and his face was ghastly.
"Poor lad!" said Mark softly. "I know it's wrong, but I can't help
liking him. Why, I know," he cried excitedly. "That's it. I never saw
such an enemy! He must have known that we were being attacked, and been
coming to help us, and those fiends have served him like this. That's
it! He's just the fellow who would do it, for I know he likes me. I've
seen it over and over again."
He sprang up, feeling ashamed of what he had said, and afraid of being
seen by his people, for he heard steps coming; and directly after, Dummy
came running down, followed by a couple of stout miners, each fully
armed.
"Here, Dummy," cried Mark, "run all the way to Master Rayburn, and tell
him to come here directly."
"Go to fetch Master Rayburn for him?" said the boy, staring.
"Yes, can't you see he is wounded and burnt? Run, or I'll go myself!"
Dummy, awed by this--to him--awful threat, dashed down the zigzag at a
dangerous pace, while, at their young master's orders, the two miners
gently lifted and bore the insensible lad up to the castle, into the
dwelling-house, and then to Mark's chamber, where he was laid upon the
bed.
As soon as he had dismissed the bearers, Mark began to bathe the lad's
temples, and in a few minutes he opened his eyes and stared wildly
round.
"Where am I?" he said.
"Here: safe," said Mark.
Recollection came back to the poor fellow's swimming brain, and he threw
his legs off the couch and tried to rise, but sank back with a groan.
"There: you can't," said Mark soothingly, and he took his hand. "Tell
me--what's happened? You didn't see, because you'd fainted when I had
you brought in, but we're in trouble too. But I suppose you know. Were
you going to help?"
"To help?" said Ralph faintly. "No; to ask for help. They took us by
surprise. Our men wounded. Just at day-break. We were all asleep.
They climbed in."
"Who did? Purlrose?"
"Yes; and his men. Father called me to dress, and we called the men
together, but they got between us and the arms. The cowards! they cut
us down. The poor lads who were wounded too. All so sudden. In a few
minutes it was all over. Father prisoner--half our men dead; rest
locked in one of the lower rooms: and I crawled away--to lie down and
die, I thought."
"Why, it must have been after they had failed here," muttered Mark.
"They did not see me; I was behind an over-turned table, and a curtain
and chair over me. I could hear all they said. They sat and drank
after they had dragged out four of our poor fellows, dead."
"Then they sat and talked; I heard them. That captain said Cliff Castle
would do as well as Black Tor, and they would stay there."
"Ah!" panted Mark excitedly.
"And a great deal more. It meant that they'd taken the place, and I
felt then that I must die. I don't know how long they were there. It
was hot and stifling, and there was smoke, and a man rushed in, and said
the prisoners had escaped, and set fire to the place."
Ralph shuddered and was silent, till Mark began bathing his face again,
when he seemed to revive a little, and wandered on:
"Fire burned so fast--crawled out--through the window--Minnie's
fish-pool--castle burning so fast--father--Minnie--help!--oh help!"