Читать книгу The Crimson Sign - H. A. Cody - Страница 12

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The presence of Helen Garland at the little Oromocto settlement was a great annoyance to Madam Louise D'Armours. During the next two days her life was made miserable by what she saw and heard. Men from the fort visited the Sorrell house, but they did not come to see her as formerly. She knew the reason. It was the English girl who was the attraction, and a burning jealousy filled her heart. To her proud and imperious nature it was almost unbearable to be outshone by another, and a captive girl, at that. Her jealousy increased to hatred, and this led to more terrible thoughts. She must get her rival out of the way. But how was this to be accomplished without bringing suspicion upon herself? Desperate woman though she was, she well knew that the girl was a very important captive, and she often wondered why Villebon did not take her at once to the Nashwaak and keep her under strict guard. Should anything happen to her at the Oromocto it would bring down upon the inhabitants not only the vengeance of Villebon but of Count Frontenac, as well. In vain she racked her brain for some scheme to get clear of the girl without arousing suspicion.

David kept her informed of what he saw and heard. But she longed to know more. Madame Sorrell came to see her the second morning after Helen's arrival. The good woman was greatly worried.

"I do not know what to do, Madame," she confided. "Men from the fort keep coming to our place all times of the day and night. They say they want to talk to Gabriel about the raid they made upon Fort Reliance, and the cause of their defeat. But we know it is the English girl they come to see."

"Has Foulette been there?" Madame Louise asked.

The visitor's face darkened, and her usually calm eyes glowed with anger.

"No, that brute doesn't dare to come. I believe Gabriel would kill him if he did. You know what he did to our little Julie."

"Yes, yes, I know all about that sad affair. And so you think something may happen to the English captive?"

"I am afraid so, Madame. That girl is too beautiful to be in such a country as this. Mon Dieu! most men are more like wolves than human beings. I am at my wit's end to know how to save her."

"Is there any way we can hide her, Marie? We might send her to some place where she could not be found."

Madame Sorrell held up her hands in despair.

"Where can we send her, Madame?"

"What about the League of the Crimson Sign? She would be safe among her own people, would she not?"

A frightened expression came into Madame Sorrell's eyes, and she glanced anxiously around.

"Be careful what you say, Madame. If Villebon should hear your words it would not be well. He is hard enough on us as it is, but if you send that girl to the Saganic, I tremble to think of what he would do to us."

"You are quite right, Marie. We must be careful. But, perhaps, we could do something without arousing suspicion. Suppose the girl disappeared and left no trace, that would be different."

"Ah, Madame, she could not leave this place alone, and who would go with her?"

"But suppose Pete King and his men came and carried her off some night? That would be very easy, and no blame would rest upon us. Have you thought of that?"

"I have, Madame. But how are we to send word to the Saganic? There is no one here who could go. It is a long way off, and something might happen to the girl before the men of the Crimson Sign could come, Dear me, I don't know what to do!"

Shortly after noon Pierre Goutin arrived from the Nashwaak. He had taken a supply of eggs, butter and meat from the Jemseg to the fort the previous day, and had spent the night at the house of his sister, Madame Bedard, wife of the fort armourer. Pierre was a man well past the prime of life, wizened, and so stooped by hard labor that he was generally known as the "hunchback". He was true as steel to his friends, a great lover of children, and anxious to help all in trouble. His nature was almost childlike in its simplicity, and his big mouth would expand to a grin of delight when he saw or heard something new. To the D'Armours brothers and their families he had the unreasoning faithfulness of a dog. Their enemy was his enemy, and when occasion required he could be like a lion in defence of its brood.

Madame Louise had known Pierre all her life, and knew that he could be trusted. She had always looked forward to his visit every week, and sometimes twice a week on his way to or from the Nashwaak with supplies. From him she heard about her sister at the Jemseg, as well as the latest news from the fort. So on this day she had his dinner ready, and while he ate at the kitchen table, she seated herself nearby and listened while he told her about what Madame Marguerite had been doing during the past week, the quaint things the children had said, and various farming incidents.

Madame Louise was forced to be patient, for she knew that Pierre would tell her no fort gossip until he had finished his recital of the affairs at the Jemseg. It was always his way, for what was nearest his heart had to be related first. Everything else, no matter how important, had to wait.

"And what is the news up river?" Madame Louise asked when at length her visitor shoved back his chair from the table and drew forth his pipe.

"What news, Madame?" Pierre's mouth opened in an expansive grin. "Why, you have the news here."

"The news here! What do you mean?"

"That English girl, of course. She is all the news at the fort. Everybody is talking about her. I hear she is very beautiful."

"Ah, so her fame is on the lips of all! I am not surprised. But why does not Villebon take her to the Nashwaak? His men would not have to travel so far to admire her beauty."

Pierre looked cautiously around, and then lowered his voice.

"It is not just to see the English girl that they come. Ah, no, it is more than that. It is to spy upon us."

Madame Louise started and looked keenly at her visitor. She then rose quickly to her feet and laid a hand upon Pierre's shoulder.

"Villebon suspects us? Is that what you mean?" she whispered.

"It is just that, Madame. The commander is leaving the girl here for a few days, thinking that, perhaps, we might help her to escape to the Saganic."

"The villain! The base coward!" The woman's hands clenched hard, and her eyes glowed with a fierce light. "He hates us for interfering with his fur trade. But as he cannot stop us, he is now trying this scheme to entrap us, and then charge us with disloyalty and treachery to France. Oh, the devil! I would like to get my hands on him and tear the eyes out of his head."

Pierre grinned with delight, for it always pleased him to see Madame Louise in a rage against Villebon. She looked so wonderful then, and even Cleopatra in her frenzy of fury could not have surpassed this Acadian Cleopatra of the Oromocto.

"You could do it, Madame, and I wish you had the chance. But we must be most careful. Villebon is a very hard man, and he is driven on by Frontenac. If that English girl should escape, it will be bad for us."

"But she must escape, Pierre. I don't want her here. She is too beautiful, and that makes her dangerous."

Pierre's eyes narrowed a little as he looked at this aroused woman. With quick intuition he began to understand what had not been said in words. Madame was jealous of the English girl. That was it. Again he grinned, this time with pleasure at his own shrewdness. He arose to his feet and picked up his hat.

"I must be away now, Madame. There is much work to be done at the Jemseg. We are in the midst of haying, and we are all too few."

But Madame Louise detained him.

"Just a minute, Pierre. Who told you this secret?"

"My sister Rosette. She has no love for Villebon and his officers, as you well know."

"I do. The commander suspects her, too. Suspicion is everywhere in this country. The air is polluted with it, and we are breathing it all the time."

"And you know where it comes from, Madame?"

"I certainly do. What can we expect when the atmosphere of the Court in France is foul with suspicion?"

"And Quebec, too, Madame."

"Yes, and Quebec. No place is free from it. Mon Dieu! how often have I longed to go where people are not forever spying upon one another."

"You would never find such a place, Madame, for you would carry it with you. It is in your system. Your sister's is the only house where you do not feel and breathe the spirit of suspicion. But it would not be so if you were there."

Instead of being angry at these plain words, Madame Louise smiled. She knew they were true, and that she would be unhappy in any other atmosphere.

"Ah, Marguerite is different from all others in this country, Pierre. She was always so good and gentle, while I—"

She was interrupted by a knock upon the door facing the river. Opening it, to her astonishment she saw Villieu standing before her. Pierre, having caught sight of the officer through the window, hastily left the kitchen by the back door, wondering greatly as to the meaning of Villieu's unexpected visit to the Oromocto.

As he walked towards the river, he heard children's voices. They came from a beautiful grassy spot behind a row of bushes. Pierre could never resist the compelling lure of little children. Where they were he longed to be. His hand moved to a pocket of his rough jacket and he smiled in pleasant anticipation. He knew what would please them and cause them to dance in glee upon the grass.

Keeping himself out of sight, he glided cautiously towards them. At length he stopped and peered though the bushes. Yes, they were there, a little group under the shade of a big tree, and among them he beheld the English girl. Lizette and Barbe D'Armours were seated by her side, while the boy Noel was playing with David nearby. It was a beautiful scene of peace and happiness, and Pierre's heart beat faster than usual as he watched. But it was upon Helen Garland that he kept his eyes fixed, and he at once knew that what he had heard about her had not been exaggerated.

Presently a sense of pity and concern swept upon him. What chance would such a girl, and a captive, at that, have in a wilderness country, where those in authority were more like beasts of prey than human beings? He thought of the fate of young Julie Sorrell. And the brute who had ruined her and caused her death was still alive and strutting pompously around. Most likely he had his lustful eyes upon this English girl, and would not be long in seeking her. As Pierre thought of Foulette and his evil deeds, his wrinkled face became very grave, and fear tugged at his sympathetic heart.

It was not natural, however, for Pierre to remain long in such a mood, especially when children were near. They always dispelled the evil spirit from his heart, and he became as one of them. So as he watched the little ones, a smile overspread his face like sunshine breaking forth from beneath a dark cloud.

Moving a little nearer, he drew from an inside pocket of his jacket a quaint wooden fife, his precious possession. Placing this to his lips, he began to play a lively and familiar air. No sooner had the first notes sounded out than the children started in pleased surprise. The girls sprang to their feet and chased the boys as they raced towards the concealed musician. When they had found him, they pounced upon him and dragged him forth from behind the bushes with laughter and shrieks of joy.

Helen watched them with considerable interest, wondering who the visitor could be, and why the children were so delighted at his presence. But when she saw Pierre as he was led somewhat reluctantly towards her, a smile overspread her face. He looked so odd, almost grotesque, as he grinned and made pretended efforts to escape from his young captors.

It was David who introduced him to Helen.

"This is Pierre, Mam'selle. He is everybody's friend, and I know you will like him. He speaks a little English."

Helen at once stepped forward and held out her hand. Pierre took it, lifted his hat and made a most profound bow.

"Bon jour, Mademoiselle. Me verra glad meet Anglais girl."

"And I am glad to meet you and to hear you speak English," Helen replied.

"Oui, oui, me spik leetle Anglais. David heem show me."

"Is this the man you told me about?" the girl asked turning to David.

"He is, Mam'selle. I taught him some, but he learned most from—"

He was rudely interrupted by Pierre's hand laid heavily upon his shoulder.

"Be careful," he whispered. "You know what I mean." He then turned to the other children. "Get out there and dance while I play. Hurry up, for I cannot stay long."

Helen sat down again upon the ground and watched with interest the animated scene before her. She looked, especially, at the musician, and noticed how his eyes shone with pleasure as he played. She liked his face, and believed that he could be trusted. After all, this was not such a bad place to which she had come. The Sorrells were good to her, the children were delightful, and now she had found another friend in Pierre. She had not yet come across any evil people to harm her.

At once Madame Louise, that cold stern woman in the house over yonder, flashed into her mind. The thought of her caused a sudden fear to come into her heart. Why it was so she could not tell. But it did, and her pleasure in watching the happy dancing forms before her vanished. She felt that notwithstanding the calmness and beauty of nature about her, she was surrounded by enemies who were planning her destruction.