The Life And Death Of Richard Yea And Nay Volume 91 by Maurice Hewlett (free books to read .txt) 📕

'I Cannot Tell You Where The Countess Of Anjou May Be,' He Was Answered.

'She Is Not Here, And Is Not In France. I Believe She Is In Palestine.'

'Palestine! Palestine! Lord Christ, Have You Turned Her Away?' Gilles

Cried, Beside Himself. Again King Richard Looked At Him, But Afterwards

Shrugged.

'You Speak After Your Kind. Now, Gurdun, Get You Home. Go To My Friends

In Normandy, To My Brother Mortain, To My Brother Of Rouen; Bid Them

Raise A Ransom. I Must Go Back. You Have Disturbed Me, Sickened Me Of

Assassination, Reminded Me Of What I Intended To Forget. If I Get Any

More Assassins I Shall Break Prison And The Archduke's Head, And I

Should Be Sorry To Do That, As I Have No Grudge Against Him. Find Des

Barres, Gurdun, Raise All Normandy. Find Above All Mercadet, And Set Him

To Work In Poictou. As For England, My Brother Geoffrey Will See To It.

Aquitaine I Leave To The Lord Of Béarn. Off Now, Gurdun, Do As I Bid

You. But If You Speak Another Word To Me Of Madame D'anjou, By God's

Death I Will Wring Your Neck. You Are Not Fit To Speak Of Me: How Should

You Dare Speak Of Her? You! A Stab-I'-The-Dark, A Black-Entry Cutter Of

Throats, A Hedgerow Knifer! Foh, You Had Better Speak Nothing, But Be

Off. Stay, I Will Call The Castellan.' And So He Did, Roaring Through

The Key-Hole. The Gaoler Came Up Flying.

'Conduct This Animal Into The Fresh Air, Dietrich,' Said King Richard;

'Send Him About His Business. Tell Your Master He Will Now Do Better.

And When That Is Done, Let Me Go On To The Leads That I May Walk A

Little.'

Gurdun Followed His Guide Speechless; But The Archduke Was Very Vexed,

And Declined To See Him. 'I Decide To Be A Villain, And He Makes Me A

Vain Villain,' Said The Great Man. 'Bid Him Go To The Devil.' So Then

Gilles With Head Hanging Came Out Of The Gate, And Jehane Leaped From

Her Angle To Confront Him.

To Say That He Dropped Like A Shot Bird Is To Say Wrong; For A Bird

Drops Compact, But Gilles Went Down Disjunct. His Jaw Dropped, His Hands

Dropped, His Knees, Last His Head. 'Ha, Heart Of Jesus!' He Said, And

Covered His Eyes. She Began To Talk Like A Hissing Snake.

'What Have You Done With The King? What Have You Done?' King Richard On

The Roof Peered Down And Saw Her. He Turned Quite Grey.

'I Could Do Nothing, Jehane,' Gilles Whimpered; 'I Went To Kill Him.'

'You Fool, I Know It. I Saw You Go. I Could Have Stayed You As I Do Now.

But I Would Not.'

'Why Not, Jehane?'

She Spurned Him With A Look. 'Because I Love King Richard, And Know You,

Gilles, What You Can Do And What Not. Pshutt! You Are A Rat.'

'Rat,' Says Gilles, 'I May Be, But A Rat May Be Offended. This King

Robbed Me Of You, And Slew My Father And Brothers. Therefore I Hated

Him. Is It Not Enough Reason?'

Her Eyes Grew Cold With Scorn. 'Your Father? Your Brothers?' She Echoed

Him. 'Pooh, I Have Given Him More Than That. I Have Burned My Heart

Quite Dry. I Have Accepted Shame, I Have Sold My Body And Counted As

Nothing My Soul. Robbed You? Nay, But I Robbed Myself, And Robbed Him

Also, When I Cut Him Out Of My Own Flesh. From The Day When, Through My

Prayers Against Blood, He Was Affianced To The Spanish Woman, I Held Him

Off Me, Though I Drained More Blood To Do It. Then, That Not Sufficing

To Save Him, I Gave Myself To The Old Man Of Musse; To Be His Wife, One

Of His Women, Do You Understand? His Wife, I Say. And You Talk Now Of

Father And Brothers And Your Robbery, To Me Who Am Become An Old Man's

Toy, One Of Many? What Are They To My Soul, And My Heart's Blood, To My

Life And Light, And The Glory That I Had From Richard? Oh, You Fool, You

Fool, What Do You Know Of Love? You Think It Is Embracing, Clipping,

Playing With A Chin: You Fool, It Is Scorching Your Heart Black, It Is

Welling Blood By Drops, It Is Fasting In Sight Of Food, Death Where

Sweet Life Offers, Shame Held More Honourable Than Honour. Oh, Saint

Mary, Star Of Women, What Do Men Know Of Love?' Dry-Eyed And Pinched,

She Looked About Her As If To Find An Answer In The Sullen Moors. If She

Had Looked Up To The Heavy Skies She Might Have Had One; For On The

Tower's Top Stood King Richard Like A Ghost.

'Listen Now To Me, Jehane,' Said Gilles, Red As Fire. 'I Have Hated Your

King For Four Years, And Three Times Sought His Life. But Now He Has

Beaten Me Altogether. Too Strong, Too Much King, For A Man To Dare

Anything Singly Against Him. What! He Slept, And I Could Not Do It; And

Then I Slept, And He Awoke And Let Me Lie. Then Once Again I Woke And

Thought Him Still Sleeping, And Stabbed The Bed; And He Came Behind Me,

Stealthy As A Cat, And Trounced Me Over His Knee Like A Child. Oh, Oh,

Jehane, He Is More Than Man, And I By So Much Less. And Now, And Now, He

Sends Me Out To Win His Ransom As If I Were An Old Lover Of His, And I

Am Going To Do It! Why, God In Glory Look Down Upon Us, What Is The

Force That He Hath?'

Gilles Now Shivered And Looked About Him; But Jehane, Having Mastered

Her Breath, Smiled.

'He Is King,' She Said. 'Come, Gilles, I Will Go With You. You Shall

Find The Abbot Milo, And I The Queen-Mother. I Have The Ear Of Her.'

'I Will Do As I Am Bid, Jehane,' Said The Cowed Man, 'Because I Needs

Must.'

As They Went Away Together, King Richard On The Roof Threw Up His Arms

To The Sky, Howling Like A Night Wolf. 'Now, God, Thou Hast Stricken Me

Enough. Now Listen Thou, I Shall Strike If I Can.'

After A While Came Cogia The Assassin; To Whom Jehane Said, 'Cogia, I

Must Take A Journey With This Man. You Shall Put Us On The Way, And Wait

For Me Until I Come Again.'

'Mistress,' Replied Cogia, 'I Am Your Slave. Do As You Will.'

She Put On The Dress Of A Religious, Gilles The Weeds Of A Pilgrim From

Jerusalem. Then Cogia Bought Them Asses In Gratz And Led Them Down To

Trieste. They Found A Ship Going To Bordeaux, Went On Board, Had A Fair

Passage, Passed The Pillars Of Hercules On Their Tenth Day Out, And Were

In The Gironde In Five More. At Bordeaux They Separated. Gilles Went To

Poictiers In A Company Of Pilgrims; Jehane, Having Learned That Queen

Berengère Was At Cahors, Turned Her Face To The Gascon Hills. But She

Had Left Behind Her A Prisoner To Whom Death Could Bring The Only Ransom

Worth A Thought.

'Ask Me No More How I Did In Those Days,' Writes Abbot Milo. 'Mercy

Smile Upon Me In The Article Of Death, But I Worked For The Ransom Of

King Richard As (I Hope) I Should For That Of King Christ. Many An Abbey

Of Touraine Goes Lean Now Because Of Me; Many A Mass Is Wrought In A

Pewter Chalice That Richard Might Come Home. Yet I Soberly Believe That

Madame Alois, King Philip's Sister, Was Precious Above Rubies In The

Work.'

I Think He Is Right. That Stricken Lady, In The Habit Of A Grey Nun Of

Fontevrault, Came By Night To Paris, And Found Her Brother With John Of

Mortain. They Had Been Upon The Very Business. Philip, Not All Knave,

Had Been Moved By The News Of Richard's Immobility. He Had Had Some Of

De Gurdun's Report.

'Christ-Dieu,' He Said, 'A Great King Calm In Chains! And My Brother

Richard. Yet God Knows I Hate Him.' So He Went Muttering On. The Count

Edged In His Words As He Could.

'He Hates You, Indeed, Sire. He Hates Me. He Hates All Of Us.'

'I Think We Could Find Him Reasons For That, My Friend, If He Lacked

Them,' Said Philip Shrewdly. 'Do You Know That De Gurdun Is In Poictou

Come From Styria?'

Count John Said Nothing; But He Did Know It Very Well. When They

Announced Madame Alois The King Started, And The Count Went Sick White.

'We Will Receive Her Grace,' Said Philip, And Advanced Towards The Door

For The Purpose. In She Came In Her Old Eager, Stumbling, Secret Way,

Knelt In A Hurry To Kiss Her Brother's Hand, Then Rose And Looked

Intently At John Of Mortain.

The King Said, 'You Visit Us Late, Sister; But Your Occasions May Drive

You.'

'They Do Drive Me, Sire. I Have Seen The Sieur Gilles De Gurdun. King

Richard Is In Hold At Gratz, And Must Be Delivered.'

'By You, Sister?'

'By Me, Sire.'

'You Grow Christian, Madame.'

'It Is My Need, Sire. I Have Done King Richard A Great Wrong. This Is

Not Tolerable To Me.'

'Eh,' Says Philip, 'Not So Fast. Was No Wrong Done To You?'

'Wrong Was Done Me,' Said The White Girl, 'But Not By Him.'

'The Wrong Lies In His Blood. What Though The Wrong-Doer Is Dead? His

Blood Must Answer It.'

Alois Shivered, And So, For That Matter, Did One Other There. She

Answered, 'I Pray For His Death. Dying Or Dead, His Blood Shall Answer

It.'

'You Speak Darkly, Sister.'

'I Live In The Dark,' Said Alois.

'King Richard Has Affronted My House In You Sister.'

But She Said, 'I Have Affronted King Richard Through His House.'

'Is This All You Have To Say, Alois?'

'No, Sire,' She Told Him, With A Fierce And Biting Look At Mortain; 'But

It Is All I Need Say Now.'

It Was. A Cry Broke Strangling From The Count. 'Ha, Jesus! Sire! Save My

Brother!' The Wretch Could Bear No More. The Woman's Eyes Were Like

Swords.

King Philip Marvelled. 'You!' He Said, 'You!' John Put Out His Hands.

Oh,