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Show Tho , BLADE Of PICARDY k By ?5 fred Mclaughlin Copyright by -J't Tn Bubba-ilwrrlll 0. J -VT. N. D. Sorvloe H k. J f trj 01 Hi, one moriilug, wiien I ca.iic park ur ust from tlmt dim borderland wliore J r: jreams are mnde, I found Doloiee J? o standing by uiy bed. I tried to nrlse ud discovered that the strength that Sj& bus ever been my pride was gone. "How long ha It been, Dolores?" "Nearly a mouth." Uct face brightened. bright-ened. "But you nre better uow ; sunn ' Ij: rou will be out again." So I waited, and later Pusiml ijSj. came. His fine eyes glowed when lie 'is j saw that I had awakened. Strrti "You have made n grievous lilun- csa Jer, Pasqual," said I, "for. In Hiding 5? me, you have put your life In danger, 1 & tieoause the French " ' He laughed. "We do not know who L.r you are, senor, we are only Ignorant Minns, trying to coax a meager llv Ifc Ing from this farm; and an old broken brok-en man comes to us In the night, ask-sTSl ask-sTSl Ing for food and shelter and care, ti-. Shall we let him die?" sis Pasnual had rented a little farm of 2s' & corn and cane and fruits of many 7 & kinds that lay along rhe river a tnlle or more to the south of Cnernavaca s it The Identifying uniform of mine, md the printed notice calling atten-tloa atten-tloa to my crime, had been hidden itlth the greatest care. The weeks of my convalescence sent slowly enough, yet they went : and, one day, I found myself, dressed as the Indian farmers along the river Stcj are dressed, following a plow and the ai "calico" pony on Pasqual's piece of izs land. I helped him gather his corn and I learned to swing the cane knife is deftly as he might swing it. My hair was kept purposely long, and the heavy heard concealed most of niy face. The crude garments cowed the lines of my body, and I j. tad practiced the bent stooped pos-s pos-s tore and the dragging shambling walk of an aged man until that Impersonated Impersona-ted Bon had become a natural thing, nit The weeks that I lived in the home ftx- ot this good couple, working day by ten- day to pay for the food that I ate, fere happy weeks Indeed. The sub-I. sub-I. itantial fare, the simple life, the W steady outdoor employment and the long nights of sleep brought back my 12), strength and added a tithe or two. sft Ever the lure of La Anita held me; aever a day passed but her fair face " came to me. She walked with me. In spirit, through the forest ; In the fields she talked to me, and In my sleep I sometimes heard her calling: "Francois Francois 1" and I woke up AH answering her, for she called as though she needed me. jjj Because of my longing to see, and to talk to fellowmen, I began to '"y watch the road, and to stop a traveler travel-er now and then to chat a while. I , learned from a passing goldler In the service of the emperor that th pur- OH wit of Captain d Ylgny was still on, and that even boats from the various vari-ous ports were being watched. It One day I saw, through the low 11 cane that I was cutting, a figure on the road' that piqued my fancy. He d ai bearded, bowed, his Walk was the dragging walk of age, and he led an ever laggard burro with an over- 0 whelming load. I made my way to j,. 'he fence and watched him, for some- tMng faintly familiar about the man kept beating at my brain. I had seen g Mm, I knew him. . . . Mon Dieu p -Madrella! He turned Into the gateway that y led to the home of Pasqual, and, slip- ... Ping the short cane knife Into my belt, I made for tie shelter of the 1 corn. I remembered that Dolores had taken the pony and gone to Cuerna- 'aea, so Pasqual would be alone at ..( th house. l" Had Madrella come for me, or had he. by chance, merely stopped on his "ay to the camp of Benito Juarez i for a drink of water and a word or J twoj a strange exhilaration pos-j pos-j sessed me, long dead and forgotten f desires awoke within me again. I thrilled to the game. The mantle of 'Be fell away from me"! I was De ?Eny and he was Madrella and the , tortd was far too small for the two 1,, of "I I was grateful for the sturdy j '"Dploytnent that had engaged me, and tor Uje long nights of sleep and the ,fi "bstanttal food that had rebuilt me wd strengthened my muscles again, t,.eottus I was going to need them in rtit th8. my last fight with my arch-en-' "By. Silently I slipped into the back door ( the house, and, listening, knew rom the sounds of their Tolces that LB, they were In the patio. "A drink of Jfater" Madrella was speaking "Is a $ o! thIn' yet the blessluss thQt He stopped short in that hypocrites! hypocrit-es! sermon that he was about to de "ver and turned a calculating eye up ' u Pasqual- "Have I not seen you '"ore, senor? Did yon not work for ; 'wuei, of the Hotel Montezuma Drlnging hay from the hills?" Pasqual nodded. That he had not Ji '"cognized Madrella was evident, for 018 Dosture was not one of defense B us i nose or evasion. "Then you are Pasqual," said Madrella, Ma-drella, and I could not full to get the menace In his tone. "Yes, senor, I am Pasqual, but?" "And you climbed Into a window of Manuel's hotel one early morning finding two men fighting there; is that not so?" Pasqual took n long time to answer Now he know Madrella, of course. "Are you dumb? Answer me, dolt!" "I found two men fighting,' senor and 1 kept oue of them from shoot Ing the other. Had he succeeded he may have had regrets." Madrella laughed harshly, "a kindly kind-ly thought Indeed ! And did you know Pasqual, that the man who wielded the stool was Captain Vlgny, of the French?" "I do now," said Pasqual. "And that he murdered his friend, another officer?" "A pity!" "Do you know that a thousand pesos has been offered for him or even for his body?" "A deal of money, senor." "You know all this, Pasqual?" The Indian thought a long moment. "I do not believe all of it, senor, for he is not a man who would murder his friend." Madrella's face was grim. "He Is not a man, Pasqual; you say he Is not? Then you have seen him you know " The Indian launched his lithe body as Madrella's right hand bearing a flaming pistol whipped from a voluminous vol-uminous coat. .Madrella was never a man to be caught off guard. Pasqual's clutching Angers missed their mark, and he fell headlong to the packed earth, that was the floor of the patio. Now anguish tore at the chords of my heart. Pasqual line honest Pasqual Pas-qual had offered up his life for me! And Dolores . . . Name of C d what could I tell Dolores? Rage possessed me, red rage a blind fury that shook me like a palsy. I trembled trem-bled with the fervor of a sudden hatred; the old, long-forgotten lust for killing overwhelmed me again. This man had brought about the death of Pasqual, my friend, he hnd wrecked my career, my life, had made a hunted thing of me a murderer, i a deserter had killed the love that I he Senorita Arrellanos had for me . . . As he stood, pistol In hand. 1 stepped into the patio. He raised his eyes. "Well, old man, Is this your master?" Then he hadn't sought me after all ! "I have no master," I said. "Humph . . . truculent." He laughed a little. "Does another man live in this house? Answer me quick ly before I break your back I" "Only Dolores and Pasqual and I have lived in this house and my back Is hard to break, senor." "Rattle!" said he. "A falling leaf should make less noise. Has a French officer been here? Don't lie to me lest I lay this gun across that useless use-less skull of thine! When was he here and whither did he go? Speak up 1" He came close to me and pushed the pistol under my nose. I struck his wrist sharply, dislodging dislodg-ing the weapon from his hand, for the blow had surprised him. I kicked the gun across the patio before he had time to recover his wits, then I waited, fully prepared for any attack at-tack he might care to make. He swore softly. "Xou are not so old, senor." "Not so old," I agreed, "that I have forgotten any of the things that you have done to me." "Mother of G d!" he gasped. There was a touch, of awe, the shock of a great surprise and consternationIn consterna-tionIn his voice ; and, I think, a little lit-tle fear too. His groping fingers found the handle han-dle of a cane knife, and closed upon it Now the familiar, confident smile came back to his face; the expectant, professional grimace that I had first noticed, when, with a sword in my hand, I had faced him in La Anita's library. "You have been here, captain, all these weeks? Here in sight of the Cuer-nnvaca Cuer-nnvaca garrison, under the very nose of Colonel Lamadrld and Lopez using the arms of the Empire and of the Republic In a desperate effort to find you! Droll. Francois, you are too clever; a grievous pity the emperor em-peror cannot use you." "He may yet," said I, "some day." "Not unless he Is able to call to his assistance the hosts of Oie spirit world, for when you leave this place you- go feet first." "Mavhap," said L He raised the cane knife and stud-led stud-led It with a critical eye. My own knife at my belt was hidden by the rude coat that I wore. "Yon would use that, senor?" I asked, "on a defenseless man?" Why not? Your. death Is what I want and the easiest and safest way will be the most desired. Yon have humbled me before the woman I love senor, and that-to a Spaniard-is unforgivable." "And you have made ef me a fugitive," fugi-tive," 1 said, "a deserter, a murderer- yon have killed the regard that a 'gracious lady might have had for me For all of those things, as well as 'for that cowardly attack upon me " hen I had no weapon, I could have forgiven you, but for that"-I pointed point-ed to the prostrate form o Pasqual -'for that there Is no forgiving He was my friend; he jeoparded his own safety to serve me, and, at las , he offered up his life to save ,-, are a thing of evil, senor, and this fine world will be a better place without you." He took a step toward me, sudden passion Hai,-:g In hl7face7;'Slialf I slash yon, Francois, or will a simple tierce sulllce?" "Suit yourself," said I, drawing the hidden weapon from my belt. He voiced a gasping curse and threw himself upon me. I met his dashing attack with uplifted blade and followed up my parry with a sweeping sweep-ing blow so swift that had he not dodged his head would have been severed from his body. He came on again, but more carefully, more craftily craft-ily than before. I assumed at first a defensive attitude. at-titude. If he chose to fatigue himself him-self In attack then my game of parry and wait would serve me well. And, keeping away from the four walls that hemmed us In, I waited, parrying parry-ing hopefully, desperately, my eyes ever on that flashing blade of his. Our knives glinted In the sunlight, giving off sparks and sounds of vicious rapping as parry met cut or tierce. As I he battle raged back and forth across the narrow court I imagined imag-ined that his strokes hnd less of power behind them, the swift lunges of his gleaming blade became a little lit-tle slower, his panting breath more labored and unreal; the fire In his bloodshot eyes began to dim, and a furtive look of fear came in Its place. Now a wild exhilaration touched my brain. He had lost anil knew it: His strength, his courage, his skill, his will to win had failed him, and. as he moved back ever back before my sudden offensive I thought f saw in his face the terror of approaching death. I laughed aloud. "You will break my back, senor eh, you will lay that gun across my useless skull? Yon would save me for the noose? Ah senor, It is not poor, defenseless Pasqual Pas-qual you are facing now ; nor I.e-str.mge, I.e-str.mge, who fought under an ominous cloud of treachery ; neither is It Cu-pido. Cu-pido. who tried so hard and failed; nor Duroc, brave soldier of France, who met death at your hands. It is none of those, Madrella, but they will be avenged. "Carraca I" he gasped. "Do you know everything?" "I saw you kill Lestrange, senor." Now he came at me with insane fury slashing wildly, thrusting swiftly, swift-ly, charging fiercely hut It was the supreme effort before the end. for. i:i a very few seconds, he was retreat ing again before that deadly wall of steel that I built up In front of him I gave myself over to the business ot killing. Yet he parried, and staggered stag-gered away, and parried again keen clever, scientific to the last. He dodged a sudden thrust lost his balance, stumbled over the body of Pasqual, and fell, his cane knife hurtling through the air; then I leaped upon him, blade upraised. "Pick It Up, Madrella; Pick Up Your Knife." Even in the act of striking I remembered remem-bered that he was unarmed, so I held back that coup de grace. "Pick it up, Madrella; pick up your knife. I cannot strike an unarmed man." He moved back slowly, cautiously; his body was bent over and he groped behind him blindly for the weapon, his eyes on me and my upraised up-raised knife. His right hand appeared suddenly, and I was amazed to see not the gleaming cane knife but the gun. which he aimed at my heart. If he hoped to frighten me with the menace of that pointing pistol he must have received a grievous shock, for, dropping the knife, 1 leaped upon him. The fingers of my left hand closed over the weapon and my right hand found his wrist. "If you prefer a bullet to the blade, senor the bullet It shall be!" Bring Ing to bear all the strength at mj command I forced the barrel of the weapon upward and then toward my adversary. Much of his strength had spent itself In vain charges against my careful parrying and defense, and. though he strained his muscles to the utmost, the barrel of that pistol came nearer ever nearer to his heart. 1 thrust the muzzle of the gun against his chest, and, holding It thus, drew back the hammer with a care fnl thumb. Apparently he hnd given up. "Good-by, Madrella," I said, mj eyes six inches from his. 'i pulled the trigger. t first I failed to realize what had happened, for the hammer fell with a frtile click and something crashed ,.-,inst niv jaw with tremendous foie T::e un had failed to tire ano he had hit me. lie si nick ;:L:'in anrl I closed with him, r; ichin:; , hlimllv I felt 'he straining tendons of his throat and put my lingers around it The knife had failed, and the gun had failed. We would see now what the weapons that nature had given me could do. (To be continued next week.) |