Chapter 2. Unwelcome Visitors

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_ CHAPTER TWO. UNWELCOME VISITORS

When we retired to rest, all night long I dreamed of the unhappy descendant of the Inca who was beneath our roof. Some of the incidents of which I had read in Peruvian history were strongly mixed up in my mind with the reality, with the indistinctness which generally occurs in dreams.

I thought our guest was the mild and unfortunate Huascar, the rightful Inca of Peru, who was a prisoner in the hands of his fierce brother Atahualpa when the Spaniards attacked Peru with their small but determined band of robber-warriors. I thought I was aiding Huascar to escape from among his brother's army. We had passed the guards, who were fast asleep, when we came to a broad river. We attempted to swim across, when I felt my strength failing me. Huascar was bravely buffeting the stream by my side. Suddenly the bank was lined with troops. They shouted to us, and let fly a cloud of arrows at the Inca. He stopped swimming. I endeavoured to drag him on; but as I grasped at him he sank below the water. The shouts grew louder. I awoke. The noise was real, for I heard the voices of some men calling in Spanish at the court-yard gate, and desiring to be let in.

I trembled with alarm; for I at once suspected that the strangers must be the emissaries of government come in search of our guest. I jumped up and began to dress myself, intending to go out to inquire who they were; but before I had left my room I heard Jose, the servant, hold a parley with them at the gate.

"Who are you," he asked, "who come at this unreasonable hour to disturb a quiet family?"

"Open in the king's name, and we will let you know," was the answer he received.

"I must get my master's leave first, and he is fast asleep," he replied.

"We are government officers in search of a fugitive malefactor, and are benighted on our road; so you must awake your master whoever he is, and he will not refuse to give us shelter," they exclaimed.

I now went out to join Jose. He was afraid they were robbers; and I suspected that they by some means knew that the fugitive was harboured in the house, and only made this a pretext to gain an entrance. Fortunately my father was not awakened by the noise, or he might have had more difficulty than had the servant in answering the questions put by the officers of justice. Opening a slide in the gate through which he could look out, Jose let the light of the lantern fall on the strangers, and the inspection convinced him that they were what they represented themselves to be.

"Be quick there," said the strangers, "for we have but a short time to rest, and we must speedily be again on our road."

"What shall I do, Master David?" said Jose. "If we do not let them in they will batter down the door; but still I do not like to disturb the Senor Rexton. They do not look like robbers, so it is all right." With the knowledge that the Indian concealed in the house was in all probability the fugitive the officers were seeking, I felt that it was all wrong, and would have given much to have kept them out; but still I saw that it would be equally dangerous to attempt to do so. My heart all the time was beating audibly with agitation; and I was afraid that even Jose would suspect the secret. However, I replied, "Let them in, Jose, by all means, and do you attend to what they require."

He accordingly withdrew the bolts and bars of the gate, and two chief officers--alguazils they are called--and four subordinates made their appearance.

Two of them remained without to take care of their horses. They were all fierce, rough-looking fellows, armed with muskets, pistols in their belts, and swords by their sides. The officers of justice (though I do not think the name is a proper one) were often pardoned banditti, cut-throats and robbers of the blackest dye, who were glad to accept the office as an alternative for the garotte; and I believe our visitors were of that description. The inferiors were Mestizos, half Indian and half Spaniards by descent, with dark brown complexions and savage countenances--altogether gentlemen of a very unprepossessing appearance. They were accompanied by a dog, a huge, savage-looking hound, whom they called by the very ugly name of Demonio. If he was a bloodhound, as at first I thought he was, I felt that the detection of the Indian would be certain.

"You were a long time opening the gate, friend," observed, one of them as they strode into the house. "You took us for robbers, I suppose?"

"O no, Senor, not at all," said Jose; "but a servant should not let strangers into the house without his master's leave."

"Is that young senor your master then?" inquired the alguazil.

"He is my master's son; my master is Senor Rexton, an Englishman, and he is fast asleep," said Jose.

"Well, you need not disturb him then; all we want is food and shelter for the night," replied the alguazil. "Be quick with the former, some straw and blankets will serve us for beds. While, hark you, do you send some one to show the way to the stables, that our beasts may be looked after; they require food as much as we do."

"All shall be done you request, Senores; in the mean time, follow me," said Jose; and what was my dismay to see him lead the way to the large empty room I have spoken of, close to which the Indian was concealed! I dared not interfere, lest I might excite their suspicions; so I thought it best to let Jose follow his own course. Having dragged in a table from one of the other rooms, he placed a lighted candle on it, and then hurried off to call up some of the other servants to help him, leaving me alone with the officers. I was afraid of speaking to them, lest they should ask me questions; so I made signs that the servant would quickly return with what they required. I dared not even look towards the door of the secret passage, to which every instant I expected to see some of them go for the purpose of examining it. However, somewhat to my relief, they seemed not to notice the door, but throwing themselves on the ground, stretched out their limbs to rest themselves, while their hound Demonio crouched down at their feet with his head between his fore-paws, ready to spring up in a moment. I saw by the glare of his half-closed eyes that he was all the time wide awake, and eager to spring upon any one who might molest him or his masters.

My anxiety made me fancy that Jose was a long time absent, but he had really been away only a few minutes, when he returned with another servant, bringing a supply of bread and meat, and wine. Some chairs were carried into the room; and the officers being joined by their companions, they attacked the viands with a good will. Had Jose been in the secret, he might have betrayed it, but his perfectly collected manner gave no cause for suspicion.

"You do not chance to have seen or heard anything of an Indian, an atrocious villain who has escaped from justice, and is supposed to have taken the path by this up the mountains?" asked one of the officers.

O how my heart did beat as I heard this! Jose assured them with an air of perfect disembarrassment that he knew nothing of any Indian fugitive. His answers seemed to satisfy them. He next brought in some bundles of straw and blankets to serve as bedding.

"There, Senores, I hope that you will make yourselves at home, and sleep soundly after your supper," he observed, as he deposited them in different parts of the room.

"No fear of it, friend; we will not forget your hospitality," said the chief alguazil, as he helped himself to a large tumbler of wine.

I was glad to see them apparently so well satisfied; but at the same time I thought I detected a sinister expression in the eye of the speaker, with which I was not altogether satisfied. The hound Demonio, too, gave me some uneasiness; for though he came back to catch the pieces of meat thrown to him by the officers, he employed himself meanwhile in snuffing round the room in a very suspicious manner. Jose stood quietly by to attend to their wants.

"Can I do anything more for you, Senores!" he asked.

"Another flask of this wine will not be objectionable, and a bundle of cigars would be welcome," answered the chief alguazil, laughing at the thought of the comfortable quarters into which he had fallen, and determined to make the most of them.

"Certainly, Senores; I am sure my master would not object to afford all you require," said Jose, going out to fetch what was asked for.

While he was absent, what was my horror to see the dog, who had now finished his meal, begin to snuff vehemently under the door of the secret passage, and then to work away with his paws, as if to try and open it! I turned pale with alarm, for I knew that all must be discovered; but still I thought it best to take no notice of the circumstance.

"What does the dog want there?" said one of the men.

"Rats are there, I suppose," remarked another, whose wits the wine had somewhat dulled.

"Demonio has a strange fancy for rats," said a third.

"Rats or not, I should like to have a look behind the door," observed the chief alguazil, as the dog's excitement increased.

I said nothing, and the officers seemed to fancy that I could not understand Spanish, so they did not trouble me with questions. Just then Jose returned.

"What is inside that door?" asked the chief alguazil abruptly.

"Nothing that I know of but an empty cupboard," he answered quietly. "The room is little used, so that I never saw it opened."

"Bring the key, and let us see," said the alguazil.

"I have not the key; and if there is one, my master must have it, and I cannot disturb him for such a fancy," replied Jose. "The dog smells a rat; there are many in the house, and he will soon be quiet."

But the dog would not be quiet, neither was the alguazil satisfied; and at last Jose was obliged to say that he would go and ask my father for the key. I followed him out of the room.

"Jose, I will go to my father and get the key, while you stay with the strangers," I said to him. "Give them plenty of wine, and amuse them as long as you can."

I hurried to my father's room to consult what was to be done; though I intended not to mention that the key had been asked for till he had come into the passage, as of course my mother would be very much alarmed at hearing of it.

I had got him out into the passage, and was mentioning the unwelcome arrival of the Spaniards in as calm a tone as I could command, when it struck me that I might prevent his being implicated in the secretion of the fugitive if I took the whole blame upon myself. I at last told him of the suspicions the behaviour of the horrid dog had aroused in the minds of the officers; and entreated him, by every argument I could think of, to let me manage the affair as best I could.

"They can scarcely inflict any severe punishment on me," I observed, "while they might drag you off to prison, and leave my mother and brother and sisters without a protector."

"I must take the consequences of what I have done," he returned. "At the same time I do not repent having endeavoured to save the poor fellow. The act was right, and that must be my consolation."

But I was not so easily to be turned aside from my purpose; and at last he consented to let me take the key, and to use it if driven so to do, while he remained in his room. I returned, as may be supposed, in no great hurry to the hall; and as I got close to it I heard, amid the loud talking of the Spaniards and Jose, who was doing his best to amuse them, the scratching and snarling of the savage brute at the door.

"My master is incapable of breaking the laws; that I can assure your Excellencies," I heard Jose say. "If the man you seek is inside there, he did not put him in, you may depend on it. If you find anything, it will be a rat or a little mouse, perhaps, for which all this fuss is to be made."

"What you say may be true, friend; but if the key is not brought we must break open the door," observed one of the Spaniards. "The dog is not a pure bloodhound; but he has enough of the race in him to know the difference between an Indian and a rat."

At last I thought it better to go in with the key. When I reached the door of the passage, the brute snarled at me savagely, and I fully believe would have sprung upon me and torn me limb from limb, had not his masters called him off. I trembled so with agitation that I could scarcely apply the key to the keyhole. Luckily the light did not fall on me, or it would have been perceived.

"Come, young Senor, be quick about it; somebody is in there--of that I can be sworn," exclaimed the alguazil.

"There, take the key yourself, and try and open it," I answered, hoping that as he did so the Indian would rush out and make his escape, though his chance was a forlorn one. The officer took the key; some of his men approached with lights, while others held their swords and pistols ready for use. Jose looked very much astonished, though in no way alarmed at the proceedings; but I knew too well what was about to be revealed. The door flew open, and the men and their hateful dog rushed in. The fate of the poor Indian was sealed, I thought. I followed, expecting to see them tearing him to pieces. What, then, was my astonishment and satisfaction to find not a trace of him remaining! The bedding, and even the dishes in which his food had been carried to him, were nowhere to be seen.

"There, I told you so," exclaimed Jose triumphantly, "there were nothing but rats."

But the dog was not so easily satisfied; and to my horror he rushed down the narrow flight of steps leading to the secret outlet. The door at the bottom I knew was locked, and I too justly feared that the Indian would be found there. The officers hesitated about descending; for as only one could go at a time, they saw that a determined man might kill them in detail, if so inclined; so they sent their inferiors forward to make the experiment. I stood by, waiting the result with increased anxiety; for I felt that if the Indian should kill some of the officers, the difficulties of our position would be still more increased. The dog led the way, and I hoped would be the only victim; the others followed very reluctantly. Some time passed; but still there was no sign of their having discovered the fugitive.

"Have you found the rat?" shouted Jose, laughingly, from above.

"Bring the key of the other door," thundered the alguazil in return from below. I had got it, but I did not say so.

"Of what door do you speak?" asked Jose, in real ignorance of the fact that there was a door. I was anxious to gain all the time possible, believing that the Indian must have made his escape through the passage; so I let them talk on till the alguazil peremptorily ordered me to open the door, threatening me with all sorts of pains and penalties if I refused to obey.

"I have heard that there is a long passage leading no one knows where," exclaimed Jose; "so, Senores, if you are going to explore it, you had better take some torches, or you may chance lose your way."

"Bring them here instantly," shouted the alguazil.

"If you are wise men you will amuse yourselves with the wine flasks while I go to prepare them," said Jose. The advice was too agreeable to be neglected, and I was very glad to see the men return and again seat themselves at the table. While they were drinking and Jose was absent, the dog however continued running up and down the steps, and smelling in every direction.

The officers seemed to enjoy their wine so much that I was in hopes that their suspicions were lulled, and at all events I rejoiced that the Indian would have more time afforded him for making his escape. Jose at last returned with the torches, which were composed of twisted straw dipped in pitch; and the chief officer descending with less caution than before, led the way, the rest following. At the bottom of the steps was a tolerably broad space, which enabled me to pass the men so as to reach the door, where the hound, snarling at me as I approached, stood ready to rush through at his prey as I supposed. How the Indian could have escaped, still, however, remained a mystery to me. After several attempts I succeeded in turning the rusty lock, and a dark passage cut through the solid rock opened before us. The wet dropped from the roof as we proceeded, and, combined with the noxious exhalations which proceeded from the farther end, almost extinguished the torches.

"It is folly in me accompanying these men," I thought to myself; and just then a recess appearing in the rock, I stepped into it and let the rest pass me. Jose was the last; I touched him as he reached me, and whispered to him to return.

He either did not hear me, or wished to watch the proceedings of the alguazil and his subordinates. As I had no torch, I groped my way with no little difficulty to the foot of the stairs, thinking Jose was following me. To my horror, just as I was about to ascend, I heard the low-muttered growl of the savage hound, and the next instant I found my leg seized in his jaws.

"Help, Jose, help!" I cried out, but not loud, lest the officers should hear me; "the brute will kill me else."

But Jose was not, as I supposed, at hand. I felt the dog moving his jaws higher up my leg, as if he evidently was about to pull me to the ground, while the pain he inflicted almost paralysed me. I certainly was no coward, but I shrieked in my agony. In another moment he would have mastered me, when, by the faint light which came through the door of the room above, I saw a dark figure spring down the steps. The dog let go his hold of me to fly at the new-comer but was met by the point of a sharp dagger, which pierced his breast, and uttering a low yell of pain and rage, the brute fell dead at my feet. The Indian--for my preserver was the fugitive--without speaking, assisted me in dragging the dog out of sight under the steps, and then whispering, "Say not a word about the dog, he will not be discovered," again sprung up the steps.

I followed him, fearing that the men in the room above would discover him. I caught sight of him as he ascended to the roof of the alcove, by means of a single rope which hung to the ground. In the roof was a trap-door, through which he disappeared, and closed it silently after him, having first drawn up the rope. Again going below, I met Jose, and told him that the dog was dead, charging him to ask no questions, and to say nothing about it.

I was much afraid lest the men should discover the dog; for the fact of his remaining near the stairs might make them suspect that the Indian was concealed near at hand. My trousers were fortunately only a little torn, though, as the brute's teeth had met in the calf of my leg, I felt a considerable amount of pain; but I did my best to conceal it, lest the men should accuse me of killing the dog. I might with truth have replied that I had not killed him, but they would then have asked who did, to which question I could not have replied. As the life of a fellow-being was at stake, I felt the importance of being very circumspect in everything I did.

When we returned to the room, the two men who had been left there inquired what had become of their comrades.

"Hunting rats or spirits, for they will find nothing else down there I am sure," answered Jose, unconcernedly. "They will be back soon, I warrant, after their fool's chase, begging your pardon, Senores."

His words were verified more speedily than he expected, for at that moment cries and shouts were heard, and the officers came tumbling up the steps as fast as their legs could carry them, with their hair almost standing on end, and their eye-balls starting from their heads. One had lost his cap, another his sword, and all their torches; they were also wet and dirty from scraping against the sides of the cavern. They declared that they had been set upon by a whole legion of demons, who had blown out their torches and attacked them with teeth and claws, so that they were glad to escape with their lives.

"For the love of heaven shut the door, or they will be up here after us!" shouted the last of the men, as he rushed into the room.

I, as may be supposed, hurried down with joyful alacrity to obey the order, and coming back without encountering any of the demons, closed the upper door after me.

"I said you were going on a fool's errand," said Jose; "your pardon for the remark, Senores. But let me fill up your glasses, the wine will soon make you forget your mishaps." The men were easily induced to apply the proposed remedy.

"But what has become of the dog?" asked the chief.

"Carried off by the demons," observed Jose.

"Let him go," growled one who was the most bruised and dirty. "He led us into the scrape, and deserves his fate; if it had not been for him, we should not have known of that horrid vault."

The chief, notwithstanding these remarks, ordered his men to go and look for the dog; but as he showed no readiness to set the example, none of the others would obey him, declaring that they would rather be shot at once than venture again among such horrors. I felt very much relieved at the turn events had taken. The Indian had escaped, the means of the bloodhound's death was not suspected, and the officers would probably at early dawn continue their search after the fugitive.

"Ask them if they wish to return to the vault; for if not, I will take the keys up to my father," I whispered to Jose.

"No, no," answered the men. "We have had enough of the vault, and demons, and monsters, and spirits it contains. Tell your master all we want is plenty of this good wine to keep them away."

Telling Jose to give them as much as they required and to keep a careful watch over them, I hurried back to my father to inform him that the danger was over.

"I never fear the consequence of having performed a good action, my boy," he replied; "yet we should be grateful to Providence for having preserved us from much suffering, both of mind and body. The poor Indian is for the present safe. I can guess the way he escaped; but we will talk on the matter more to-morrow. Now, David, go to your room and rest, for you look pale and fatigued."

I did not tell my father that the dog had bit me, though I should have been wiser had I done so, as he would have had proper remedies applied, had the wounds required them. Jose, however, soon after came into my room and fomented my leg with a mixture which he said was very efficacious in preventing inflammation from the bite of an animal. It at all events relieved me from the pain I was suffering; and when Jose left me to keep watch with the other servants on the officers, I threw myself on my bed in the hopes of obtaining some sleep. Whenever I dropped off, my mind recurred to the unfortunate descendant of the Incas, and the scenes I had just witnessed; and every instant I was jumping up, fancying I heard the shout of the officers as they discovered his place of concealment. _

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