Show OF aw 5 R CR 0 0 adb copyright 1898 asoo 1900 by 8 FL crockett Croc keU CHAPTER the margraff Mra raf powder chests theresa and her conductor stood within the tent of the commander ot of the muscovite army she found herself in the immediate presence of prince ivan who rose with his usual lithe grace to greet her an older man with a gray pinched plumbed face sat eat listle listlessly paly with his elbow on the small email camp table lie leaned his forehead foie head bead on hla his palm and looked down domn be hind bind in the half dark of the tent a low wide divan with cushions was repealed aled and all the upper end of the tent was filled up with a hage adge and shadowy pile of kegs and boxes only halt half concealed behind it ft curtain 11 1 I bid you welcome roy my lady said eald prince ivan taking tabling her hand surely never did ally come than you to our camp to night let us ua hear your nes and then will we find you vou such bulging and welcome elcome as may be in among rough soldiers and in a aam samp p or of war lie he went to the front of the pa ailion and aside the dripping hap bap alexis I 1 he cried I 1 call up my people did bid them bring a brazier and tell these lazy lay fellows to serve supper in halt half an hour on peril of their baidal heids ile he returned and aid stood before theresa who had sunk back as it if fatigued on an ottoman covered with thick furs her feet nestled in the bearskins bear skins which covered the floor the prince princa looked anxiously down domn pardon me your shoes are wet he said we are but muscovite boors but we know how to make ladies corn com fordable for table permit roe me lie he encased theresa s feet lu in dainty cliental oil slip blip pers small as her own and placed them delicately and respectfully on the couch there that Is better I 1 he be said eald standing over her tenderly theresa did rot not answer she only smiled at the prince leaning a little farther back and resting her head bead upon the palm of her hand the warmth of the tent and the soft luxury of the rich rugs had bad brought a flush of red to a cheek which yet tingled with mith the volleying of the baltic raindrops alexis never told me ine this woman was so BO beautiful ivan said to himself who Is she she cannot be a court land such a marvel could not have been hidden from me during all rn rcy Y stay there so he addressed himself to making the discovery I 1 my lady he said you are our guest will you deign to tell us ua b how ow more formally foi mally we may address you youa you are no courtlander as all may see I 1 1 I am a dane ole bhe answered smil ing 1 I am called the lie lady sheresa for the let that suffice 1 I am venturing much to come to you thus my father and brothers built a castle uron upon the baltic shore on land that has been the inheritance ot of my mother then I 1 hen came the leivers of Kerns Kern berg aberg and burned the castle cabale to tho the ground they burned tt it with mith fire from cellar to roof tree and they the slackened the fire with the blood of my nearest kindred kindreds 1 As she spoke theresaa The ebes glittered and altered the prince read easily the meaning of that excitement how was he be to know hiow all that lay be hind and so he said you have no goodwill to the princess joan of blob enstein and courtland or to any of her favorers he added after a pause at the name the grey headed beaded w man an ho had been sitting unmoved by the ay encased theresaa The feet in dainty 0 oriental rien tall slippers ippert tl table with his elbow on the hoard board raised a strangely wizened Izer led face to theresa a what he said bald in broken accents stammering ja in his bis speech and grap pling with the words as if like a wrestler sit at a fair he mu it throw each ne lne severally what hat wro has a word to say against tile the lady ady I joan prin ess ebs of courtland who wronie her name las lae to reckon with ay were it my brother ivan himself I 1 not 1 I my go rood 04 loula ous I 1 ans answered ivan easily 1 I 1 would not wrong the lady by word or deed for or all germany from bor russia to the rhine tall fall ile he turned to leala the deacon who ho was at his elbow ifill fillip 4 up his hl i cur ur rm remember ember chrt I 1 bade YOM ho h saia ai i hanly lo in an un tn bertone I 1 ills 1118 cup Is 1 INI rii 1 will drink su no I 1 1 s more ile he pushes tt it from liml an alexis in the same halt half wills whis per prince ivan regarded loula louis of court land with disgust look at him who can wonder at the lady a taste lie he Is a pretty of a great province but it if he live he will do well enough to fill a chair and hold a gold en rod take him awa alexis nay said llie I heresa rega with quick alarm let him stay there are many things to speak of we may need to consult prince louis later I 1 fear the prince will not be ol of great use to us smiled prince ivan it if only I 1 had bad known I 1 would have conserved his princely senses more carefully but the light wine of our country Is dangerously strong 11 convey his highness to the rear and lay him upon tbt he powder barrels lie he indicated with his hand the array of boxes and kegs piled in the dusk of the tent the fer servitors did as they were told they lifted prince louis and would hane hae carried him to that grim couch but struck with some pe cul larity alexis the deacon suddenly bent over the lax body and thrust his bis liand hand into the bosom of his princely habit now tarnished thick with wine stains and spilled meats excellency he said turning to his master I 1 the prince Is dead ills heart d does 0 es not be beat a t it Is the I 1 warned aou ou it would come prince ivan strode hastily towards the body of louis of courtland surely notel not he cried in seeming astonishment this may very inconvenient yet after all what aloes oes it matter with bour our 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 tax collector in every village these are the best securities of princedom but this Is IF like our good go 0 d louis ile he never did anything at a right tirre 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 wrinkled face had been smoothed as with the passage of a hand I 1 am glad he spoke of his wife at tile the last she and she ached t to her herselia rills falls out well it relieves me of a necessity nece sIty spoken like a woman cried prince ivan looking admiringly nt at her pray forgive my bitter speech and remember that I 1 have boine long with this mant man ile he turned to the servitors servi tois tots and di H r reeled acted them with a motion of his hand towards the back of the pavilion drop the curtain he said eald and as file silken folds dropped heavily down the curtain fell upon the caleer and regality of louis prince 0 ot f courtland hereditary defender of the holy see the men did not bear him far they placed him upon the boxes of powder for the margraf s cannon which tor for safety and dryness ivan had bad bide them bring to ills his pavilion the dead man mail lay in the dark open eyed as it if fe at the circling shadows as the servitors moved athwart about the supper table at which a woman sat eating and drinking drin hing with her en f imi in 3 e and then theresi had spoken veo fully she ehe had told what she had bad learned of the defenses of the place which gates were guarded by the Kerns bergers which by the men of plassenburg Plass enburg which by the remnants of the broken army of courtland she s spoke poke in a voice the prince bisping and nodding as he looked into her e ees es she gave the passwords of the inner and outer de fences the numbers of the defenders at each gate the plans for bringing provisions up the alla alia indeed everything that a besieging general needs to know and as soon an aa she told the pass words the prince asked hel hei to par don him a moment lie ile struck a sll sil verstell vers bell and with mith scarce a moments delay alexis entered go said the prince I 1 send one 0 of our fellows familiar with the speech breech of courtland into the city by the plas plan denburg gate the passwords are lie henry nry the lion at the outer gate and remember at the lynnr port kletthe let the iran be dressed in the habit ot of a C countryman oun tryman and carry m with ith hirr him some ilni and propend follow him and port immediately while the prince was As speaking he be had never taken his eyes 0 off a von lynli though hough lie he had bad alip appealed 11 to be regarding alexis the deacon dacon tie the resa did not blanch not a muscle of her face qi gi evered and within his big 1 muscovite I 1 us covite heart full of treachery as aa an n egg of meat prince ivan said she Is no this dame but a simpleton with all her beauty the woman Is speaking the truth and theresa was v as speaking the truth she had bad expected some such test teat and was prepared but she only told the Je fenders plans to one man and as for the passwords the had arcange with boris that at the eail leat dawn the pass passwords Nords were laere to be changed anil and the forces redistributed while these two to waited for the return ei I 1 urn of alexis the prince on courant c theresa to tweak of her wrongs lie he I 1 watched with approbation the sparkle of her pye ye as tahe she spoke of joan of 0 the I 1 sword hand ile he noted how bom he shut down her lipai when henr the I 1 loii ion was mas mentioned mendo ned row om bet he voice shook a bho recounted the erd rd of her kin at nr liry lime ernei i most so A i itte br bar the prince now mow added cup to aup apfl 1 and like a MUS muscovite LOVitO 1116 h grow brew mow morel bitter as the wine mounted to hia h 1 head lie leaned e abed forward and laid il bis I 1 hand hamd upon his big companions white wrist theresa quivered a little but did not take it away the prince was beloin tag ing confidential yes he said eald leaning towards her you have suffered buffered great wrongs and do well to hate them with ith the hato bate that craves vengeance ven geanie but you shall be satisfied tomorrow to morrow and tomorrows tomorrow to morrows morrow a tomorrow to morrow you anil and I 1 shall have our hearts desire upon our enemies yes for many days sweet sweet it shall be sweet and very slow tor for 1 I too have wrongs as you shall hear bear truly I 1 hd did well to come to you said theresa giving her hand willingly into his bis you speak truth lie ile hissed the words bit bitterly terl indeed ou did better than well I 1 also nave have wrongs and ivan of will show you a muscovite vengeance I 1 this prince conrad of theirs balked me of my revenge and drove rne me from froin the city him will I 1 take and burn at the stake in hla his priest a robes as aa if he were saying baying mass or better still in the red of the a habit with his hat on his head and ere h he dies lie he shall see his paramour carried to her funeral for I 1 will givel you the lito of the woman for whose sake ho he thwarted ivan of A 0 it Is worth it all it you N ill it no hand band but yours shall have the El bedding ledding of the blood of your houses house s enemy henry ot of Kerns berg 1 la 19 9 not this bour 5 our vengeance already sweet in prospect I 1 it Is sweet indeed I 1 answered theresa your said the voice ot of alexis at the tent door am I 1 permitted in bitted to speak speak on I 1 ci cited led ivan without relaxing his him clasp upon the hand band of theresa von lynar indeed momentarily it became a grip the man went safely through at the Plass plassenburg enburg gate the passwords atie correct the man who challenged spoke with a 9 Kerns berg ar cent the princes grasp relaxed it is well he said now go to the captains and tal them to be la in their posts about the city according to the plan the he main assault to be delivered by the gate of the sea at down dawn I 1 will mill bp bf with you alexis the deacon saluted and went tile the prince rose and came about aba tb s table nearer to theresa von lynar she diew her breath quickly and checked it as sharply with a kind hind ot of sob hei left hand band went ment to her side as naturally as a nuns to her johary but it wan ag no rosary her fingers touched the action steadied her and she threw back her head bead and smiled up at him as debonairly as though she had no care in the world ivan laid his liand 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 hand her right hand the other he did not see ihen he spoke conal dent lally to be continued |