CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE.
LADY ROYLAND TURNS NURSE.
Roy was face to face with the first of the stern realities of war, as hehurried into the long chamber beneath the eastern rampart, which LadyRoyland had set apart for the use of any of the men who might, she said,"turn ill."
Poor Sam Donny had fainted away before he reached the hospital-room, andupon Roy entering, eager to render assistance, it was to find himselfforestalled by Lady Royland, who, with the old housekeeper, attended tothe wounded man.
Lady Royland hurried to her son, as he appeared at the door.
"No," she said, firmly, "not now: leave this to us. It is our duty."
"But, mother, do you understand?" protested Roy.
"Better, perhaps, than any one here," she replied. "Go to your duties;but come by-and-by to see how the poor fellow is. It will cheer him."
Roy could not refuse to obey the order, and hurried back to meet Ben onthe way to the sufferer's side.
"Not go in?" said the sergeant. "Her ladyship says so? Oh, very well--then of course it is all right."
"But I feel so anxious," said Roy; "my mother is not a chirurgeon."
"More aren't we, Master Roy; but she's what's just as good--a splendidnurse. So's old Grey's wife; so Sam Donny's in clover. I was being abit anxious about him, for fear Master Pawson was doing the doctoring,and I'd rather trust myself."
"But the wound--the terrible wound?" cried Roy.
"Tchah! Nothing terrible about that, captain. Just a clean sword-cut.You've cut your finger many a time, haven't you?"
"Of course."
"Well, did you want a doctor? No; you had it tied up tightly, and leftit alone. Then it grew together again!"
"Yes, yes, yes," cried Roy, impatiently. "But this was a terrible slashon the poor fellow's thigh. You saw how horribly it bled."
"Come, Master Roy, we're both soldiers, and we mustn't talk like this.I saw his leg bleed, and stopped it, but it wasn't horrible. Leg's onlylike a big finger, and a strong healthy chap soon grows together again.You mustn't take any notice of a few cuts. They're nothing. What we'vegot to mind is the cannon-balls. Now a wound from one of them isterrible, because you see they don't cut clean, but break bones and doall kinds of mischief. Well, we mustn't talk away here, but see to themen, and get ready for what's to come."
"Do you think they'll attack us to-day?"
"Yes, sir; and as soon as they've finished their two-gun battery. Now,by rights, we ought to go and destroy that work, and spike their guns;but they've got the advantage of us with all that horse, and if we triedthey'd cut us up before we could get at it. Only chance is to try anddo it at night, if we can't dismount the guns with ours."
A hasty breakfast was eaten, and then the sergeant went up to the newlymounted guns on the top of the square tower, where Roy promised to joinhim as soon as he had been to visit the wounded man.
"Tell him I mean to come as soon as I can, my lad," said Ben, "but itwon't do him any good for me to come now. Wounded man's best left alonetill he gets over his touch of fever. But tell him I'm sorry he's down,and that I shall very much miss my best gunner. It'll please him, andit's quite true."
Roy nodded, and in due time went to the hospital-room, where he tappedlightly, and the door was opened by the old housekeeper, who lookedrather pale; but Lady Royland, who was seated by the wounded man'sbedside, rose and came to her son.
"Yes," she said; "go and speak to him; but don't stay many minutes, forhe must not talk much. A few words from you, though, will do him good."
Roy glanced towards the bed, which was close to one of the windowslooking out on the court-yard garden, and he could see that the man waswatching him intently.
"Go to him. I'll leave you and come back when I think you have beenhere long enough."
The door closed behind Lady Royland and her old assistant as Roy madefor the couch, expecting to see a painful sight of agony and terror;but, as he approached, the man's countenance expanded into a broad grin.
"Don't be hard on a poor fellow, captain," he said, just as Roy wasready with a prepared speech about being sorry to see the man in sogrievous a condition.
"Hard upon you, Sam! What for?"
"Sneaking out o' all the fun like this here! 'Taren't my fault, youknow. I didn't want to stop in bed; but my lady says I must, and thatshe'll report me to you if I don't obey orders. I say, let me get up,sir. It's just foolishness me lying here."
"Foolishness! What! with that bad wound?"
"Bad, sir? Why, you don't call that bad. If he'd cut my head off, I'dha' said it was."
"How?" cried Roy, unable to repress a smile.
"How, sir? Why--oh! o' course not. Didn't think o' that; I s'pose Icouldn't then. But I say, Master Roy, sir--I mean cap'n, I'm justashamed o' myself letting her ladyship wait on the likes o' me!"
"Why should you be, Sam? Haven't you been risking your life to defendus?"
"Me? No, sir, not as I knows on," said the man, staring.
"Well, I do know; and now you are not to talk."
"Oh, sir! If I'm to be here I must talk."
"You must not, Sam. There, I came to see how you were."
"Quite well, thank ye kindly, sir."
"You are not. You have a bad wound."
"But I aren't, Master Roy. It's on'y a bit cut; and I want to have astick and come up on the tower in case we have to work that gun."
"If you want to help to work that gun again, Sam, you will have to liestill and let your wound heal."
"Master Roy!--I mean oh, cap'n--it's worse than the wound to hear that."
"We can't help it. Tell me, are you in much pain?"
"Oh, it hurts a bit, sir; but if I was busy I should forget that, and--"
_Crash_!--_Boom_!
A strange breaking sound, and the rattling of the windows as a heavyreport followed directly after, and Roy sprang from the chair he hadtaken by the wounded man's couch.
"On'y hark, sir--that was my gun atop o' the gate tower begun firing,and me not there."
"Be patient, Sam," cried Roy, excitedly. "It was not one of our guns,but the enemy's, and the fight has begun in earnest. Good-bye, and liestill."
He was half across the room as he said this, and the door opened toadmit Lady Royland, looking deadly pale.
"Roy, my boy," she cried, in a low, pained voice, as she caught hishands; "they are firing."
"Yes, mother; and so will we," cried the lad, excitedly.
"You--you will not expose yourself rashly," she whispered; "you willtake care?"
"I'm going to try not to do anything foolish, mother," he said; "but Imust be with the men."
She clung to him wildly, and her lips trembled as she tried to speak;but no words came, and Roy bent forward, kissed her, and tried towithdraw his hands, but they were too tightly held.
_Boom_! came another report following closely upon a peculiar whizzingsound, apparently over the open window.
"Another gun from the enemy, and we're doing nothing," said Roy,impatiently. "Mother, don't stop me; they will think I'm afraid. Imust be with the men."
Lady Royland drew a deep breath, and her face became fixed and firm oncemore, though the pallor seemed intensified.
"Yes," she said, quickly, as she threw her arms about her son for abrief embrace; "you must be with your men, Roy. Go, and remember myprayers are with you always. Good-bye!"
"Just for a while," he cried. "You shall soon have news of how we aregoing on."