Show TOTf be < n < a o diibj ted to i wardep RCROCKCTrAi44ocf tCopyrlght 1898 1900 by S It Crooketr 1 Qra PI CHAPTER XXXII 15 COrl I Chests Margrafs Powder ape ne M a rgrafs stood Ter T ami her 1 conductor stud Ir er a tent of the commander ot Bongt 1n Jorlte She found her boegl N scovlte army snob In Immediate presence of lathe so 1 1 Van who rose with his usual Wo to Jnteio I greet her An older 1 face sat 15 aha 5th a gray pinched tho small Ctor af asfaith 1 his elbow on 1111 CI f tor 5 Mile Ho leaned his forehead nsand fk PI win and looUcd down B ° wire h nPthe half darl of tho tent > a a the l0 1 I i t lAreh wIde divan with cushions was all the upper end of tho anys oiled 1 and filled up with a hugo and tvingb t > as and boxes only of kegs pile w dolly d curtain concealed behind a rasa welcome my lady said kid you ibid I i eet taking her hand Sure tar Irslvan 3C ally come welcomer than I his M erer did I camp tonight Lot us ormaa W our four news and then will we find I inch lodging and welcome ns may tit tip rough soldiers und In aIn to among L1er In of war barn I P went to the front of the pa feet dr 00 e and pushed aside the dripping penis he cried call up my peo Prob Bid them bring a brazier and tell lit In fellows to serve supper in lazy > 5e miles 1 tn hour on peril of their heads Jgedy e returned and stood before There The-re who had sunk back as If fatigued ottoman covered with thick furs owner feet nestled In the bearskins r d LE a Tho Prince I h covered the floor wiured J ed anxiously downturn down-turn Pardon me your shoes are wets s home slid We are but Muscovite boors fe know how to make Indies com epman able Permit me He encased oriental slip t a sh mesas feet in dainty driven i small as her own and placed a delicately and respectfully on s own j I Js teach or foere that Is better ho said ding over her tenderly j I emplo heresa did not answer She only 11 are Wat the Prince leaning a little y for her back and resting her head the sir a the palm of her hand The thous nth of the tent and the soft lux ot the rich rugs had brought ali placed a-li of red to a cheek which yet ranch fled I with the volleying of the Bal raindrops here Ir tels never told me this woman presen beautiful Ivan said to himself mdles e mlsshe She cannot be a Court o to 2 jl Such a marvel could not haven have-n hidden from me during all my learn there Ilvorce le addressed himself to maldng 2 and discovery were t Iliad he said you arc our I it Will you deign to tell us how stood I i formally we may address you gave are no Courtlandor as all may I d fem am a Dane she answered smll tly lit I am called the Lady Theresa yet aU tte present let that suffice I Agle r venturing much to come to yon IVo My father and brothers bill1 ougb I lEUe upon the Baltic shore or f that has been the Inheritance of man 1 mother Then came the reivers tonsberg and burned the castle rl bran he ground They burned It with ranch from cellar to rooftree And they s vest toed the fire with the blood of vas hi rarest kindred mnds I she spoke Theresas eyes gilt vhleh d and altered The Prlnco read rime 7the meaning of that excitement f was he to know all that lay be I Manu halide d so he said you have no elect fflll to the Princess Joan of Hoh ho op eband Courtland Or to any of j favorers he added after a pause all oC t IM name tho greyheaded man mlna 1 I had been sitting unmoved by tho Irty li envy f is to i near 1 ir an 9 sera 1 000a d is f r a are d al met days Cal A hat r r brosPk ItY Is o For Fo-r 72 old lIatln lloxee 1e C COs was iI led Tat T-at IP Theresas feet In dainty Sola Vtltl oriental i slippers hi Hbow on tho board t d 1 front a stratilfl wizened faco to sner r CIa5 1 close hat ti0 1 said lu brol0n accents spot aering In his I > speech and lilt grail wltll he nel UPI the words ns It like a 01 t at a filer ho must throw each eie no ewer all ° n4a ally what who I t COO 1 31 has n word agal agalnst iho Lady Joan Prln C I of C the ourlll1l1ll who her s has wrongs I aI wdI as we to 1 br uckou witha wore land otbrother i Ivan himself I Is seas erod I isnn Cprtall1l my good Louis I seek g the t easily I would not ran lady I IJ > word or deed for all I o any j nee 1 peal rUDI lloi usslt to tho I I t tI e lc 1urnp m w at Isle ILO le xla the Dcndu i who pplY ow llt 111 lit II hi d Tau III remember what 1 he I 11 JOe I khnrply In an un lia cup I will drink no I more lie pushes It frol1 hint swered Alexl il an the same per half wIlis Prince Ivan 1 land with gllrdet Louis uC Court I II sgllst 1Vllo clln 001 at hi 1111 wonder lit hit J al I s tat07 lie Is a pretty prince I of a great pro Ince But If he live e he will 1I0 well ollollh to fill n chair and hold a gold al el en rod lake e hlnl away Ilexis Nay sail Tlwl Theresa with qulcl alarm let burn slay There lings are many to speak oC We may need to consult Prince I 011 1 Hater I I fear tho Prince wlli will not bo of great use to us Sill II lt I llnce Ivan It only I Had known I would have conserved his princely I senses more carefully But the light 111110 w of our country Is dangoiousTy strong Convey his lRhno88 to the rear nml lay him J Upon the powder barrels Ho Indicated with his hand tho array t boxes and kegs piled In the dusk of Ue tent The servitors did as the were laid they lifted Prince Louis and would have carried him to that Brim couch but struck with some III bonl1 y AlexIs the Denon suddenly < bent OVer the lax body and thrust his hand into the bosom of hs princely habit now tarnished thick with wIno stains and spilled meats Excellency he said turning to his master the Prince is dead Ills heart does not heat It is tha stroke I warned you it would come I Prince Ivan strode hastily towards the body of Louis of Courtland Surely not he cried In seeming astonishment This may prove very inconvenient Yet after all what does it matter With your assistance madam the city Is ours And then what matters dead prince or living prince A garrison In every fort a squadron of good Cossacks pricking across every plain a taxcollector In every village these are the best securities ot princedom But this Is like our good Louis He never did anything at aright a-right time all his life Theresa stood on the other side of the dead man as the servitors lowered him for the Inspection of their lord The weary wrinklod face had been smoothed as with the passage of a hand I am glad he spoke of his wife at the last she murmured And she added to herself This falls out well it relieves me of a necessity Spoken like a woman cried Prince Ivan looking admiringly at her Pray forgive my bitter speech and remember that I have borne long with this man He turned to the servitors and directed di-rected them with a motion of his hand towards the back of the pavilion Drop the curtain he said And as the silken folds dropped heavily down the curtain fell upon the career and regality of Louis Prince of Courtland hereditary Defender ot the Holy SeeThe See-The men did not bear him far Tli y placed him upon the boxes of powder for the Margrafs cannon which for safety and dryness Ian 1 had bade tliem bring to his pavilion The dead man lay in the dark openeyed as if staring at the circling shadows as the servitors moved athwart about the supper table at which a woman sat eating and drinking with her enemy en-emy 0 F i t i And then Theresa had spoken Very fully she had told what she had learned of the defenses of the place which gates were guarded by the Kernsbergers which by the men of Plassenburg which by the remnants of the broken army of Courtland She spoke In a hushed voice the Prince sipping and nodding as he looked into her eyes She gave the passwords of the Inner and outer defences the numbers of the defenders at each gate the plans for bringing provisions till the Alia indeed everything that a besieging general needs to know And as soon as she told the passwords pass-words the Prince asked her to pardon par-don him a moment He struck a silver sil-ver bell and with scarce a moments delay Alexis entered Go said the Prince send one of our fellows familiar with the speech of Courtland into the city by the Plas senburg gate The passwords are Henry tho Lion at the outer gate and Uemember at the Inner port Let the man be dressed In the habit of a countryman and carry with him some Follow him and wine and provend report immediately While the Prince was speaking he had never taken his eyes off Theresa von Lynar though he had appealed to Theresa bo regarding Alexis the Deacon resa did not blanch Not a muscle of her face quivered And within his full of treachery as Muscovite heart I an egg of meat Prlnco Ivan said this dame but r Sho is no traitress Tho simpleton with all her beauty woman Is speaking the truth speaking tho tniti And Theresa was test aJ Sho had expected some such was prepared but she only told the defenders plans to one man and as she had arranged for tho passwords dawn with Boris that at the earliest tho passwords were to be changed and the forces redistributed the return waited for While these two I turn of Alexis the Prlnco encouraged Ho Theresa to hpenk of her wrongs watched with approbation the sparkle of Joan of the I of her eye ns she spoke Sword Hand Ho noted how she shutdown the Won down her lips when Henry how her voice shook mentioned was IIIl us she recounted the cruel end of her Ulti Though at onluarj times most so her the Wince now added cup to cup and like a Mllscovc MHJ ite ho grow mora hitter as the wino mounted to his head lie loaned forward and laid I his hand upon his companions white wrist Theresa llllvm a lithe hut did not tn > take It awny The Prince wits becom lug I confidential Yes 1U said lt > iS leaning Awards her you havo sufftued great wrongs and do well to hate thom with tho hale that ho craves vengeance Hut you shall satisfied Tomorrow and tomor rows tomoriow you and 1 shall have our hearts s deslro upon our enemies Yes for many das eelsweet It snail hesweet and very slow for I too have wrongs as you shall hear Truly I did well to come to you I wild Theresa giving her hand willingly into his You speak tiutli He hissed tho words bitterly Indeed you did bet tel than well I also have wrongs and Ivan of MllscO Muscovy will show you a Muscovite vengeance This Prince Conrad of theirs balked mo of my revenge and drove I mo from the city Him will I take and burn at the sInk In his priests robes as If ho were saying mnRsor better still In the red of the cardinals habit with his hat on his head And ere he dies he shall see his paramour carried car-ried to her funeral For I will give you the life of tho woman for whose sake ho thwarted Ivan of Muscovy iJ I I s fI 1 h I 1 fl It is worth it all If you will It no hand but yours shall have the shedding of the blood of your houses enemy Henry of Kernsberg Is not this your vengeance already sweet in prospect It is sweet Indeed answered Theresa Your Highness said the voice of Alexis at the tent door am I permitted per-mitted to speak Speak on cried Ivan without relaxing re-laxing his clasp upon the hand of Theresa The-resa von Lynar Indeed momentarily it became a grip The man went safely through at the Plassenburg gate Tho passwords were correct The man who challenged chal-lenged I spoke with a Kernsberg accent ac-cent centThe The Princes grasp relaxed It Is well ho said Now go to the captains and tell them to he In their posts about the city according to the 11lanthe main assault to lie delivered de-livered by the gate of the sea At dawn I will bo with you Alexis the Deacon saluted and went The Prince rose and came about tho table nearer to Theresa von Lynar She drew her breath quickly and checked It as sharply with a kind of sob Her left hand went to her side as naturally as a nuns to her rosary But It was no rosary her fingers I touched The action steadied her and she threw back her head and smiled up at him as debonairly as though she had no care In the world Ivan laid his hand on her shoulder glad to see her so resolute All In good time he said sitting down on a stool at her feet and taking her handher right hand The other be did not see Then he spoke confidentially confi-dentially To bo continued |