The Strange Story of Rab Ráby

  CHAPTER XIX.

  Raby only reached Zsambek the next morning. The dragoon-captain's househe found without any difficulty, for it stood close to the post-station.

  There were two other officers with the captain, and three horses stoodready saddled in the courtyard. They were evidently on the point ofstarting for some expedition, though there was no sign of soldiers goingwith them.

  "Aha, who is this?" cried Lievenkopp as Raby entered. "Why, bless me,it's Mathias Raby!"

  "Yes, indeed, captain. Perhaps you can guess my errand here?"

  "Truly, I cannot do any such thing."

  "Well, my wife has run away from me."

  "The deuce she has! What already? I did not think she would have gonequite so soon."

  "I went first of all to Judge Petray to demand satisfaction of him. Hewould not give it me, but referred me to you."

  "That was very kind of him."

  "Now you know why I come."

  "I know it, comrade, you want to fight me, sure enough? Very good; justchoose one of these gentlemen as your second, and we will decide withhim on the weapons. Only one thing delays our immediate meeting, andthat is, I have to fight Gyongyom Miska."

  Raby was electrified as he heard the name.

  "Can't you leave him till later? You will never succeed in catchinghim."

  "Aha, I've got him this time though; I am going at this very hour tofight a duel with him."

  "Do you know who this Gyongyom Miska really is?" asked Raby.

  "Why he lives at Szent-Torony, two hours' journey from here, where heowns an estate, and is called Karcsataji Miska. He is the notoriousrobber, and no other. This is why he is never to be caught red-handed.When he is everywhere driven into a corner, he goes quietly back home,throws off the highwayman's gear, and whoever seeks him there, findsinstead of the fierce robber with lank locks and drooping moustaches, aharmless country gentleman, with his powdered hair done in a neat cue,whom twelve witnesses can swear to not having left home for weeks. Noone will ever succeed in convicting him. But this once I've caught mygentleman nicely. Listen to how I did it. This very day when we hadplanned our attack upon the band of Gyongyom Miska, we observed asuspicious-looking fellow trying to get in between our railings. Wearrested him, searched him, and found sewn into the sole of his sandal,this letter to Mr. Michael Karcsataji. You probably will know thehandwriting."

  Raby recognised the writing of his wife.

  "Yes, you can read it, you will understand it better than we do."

  The letter ran thus:

  "Dear Miska,--Don't have any scruples about the affair in the Styrian wood. The whole suspicion falls on someone who will not be able to prove an _alibi_. Thine own one."

  Raby's arms fell helplessly at his side. It was as if he had suddenlybeen stung by a cobra.

  His own wife was the traitor who had betrayed him to his enemies! Adagger-thrust in the dark does not hurt one so much as such a discovery.

  Raby distrusted his senses; he would not, could not believe it; hethought he must be dreaming.

  "Sit down, comrade," said the captain. "You are a bit upset, and smallwonder too. The bolt didn't strike me quite so nearly, yet I too wasfairly staggered when I read the letter. Then I called up my twocomrades here, and sent my challenge over to Szent-Torony, where Mr.Michael von Karcsataji was in the courtyard, engaged in marking hisnewly born lambs. In such a harmless fashion is he wont to spend hisleisure! My second presented him with my message: 'This letter which wehave intercepted proves that you have an intrigue with a lady to whomCaptain Lievenkopp is also paying court. Captain Lievenkopp will nottolerate this sort of thing, and calls upon you to meet him to-morrow atnine o'clock, by the ruined church of Zsambek, to settle the matterthere in proper fashion.'

  "The highwayman did not deny that between us there lay ground forquarrel, and he would be at the rendezvous at the time appointed. It isnow eight o'clock. We can get to the ruins in half an hour, and thereawait my opponent. You, my friend, can remain here in my lodgings for anhour longer, and follow on after us. From nine to ten I am at Mr.Karcsataji's service. As soon as I have finished with him, we two willfire at each other till only one of us remains to tell the tale. But ifthe highwayman kill me, then you and Karcsataji will fight till one orthe other is a dead man. Is that in order?"

  "Perfectly," cried the seconds; "it could not be better arranged!"

  Raby had nothing against this settlement. When the captain had gone hestretched himself on his host's camp-bed, and was fast asleep in a fewminutes, completely exhausted by his recent experiences.

  * * * * *

  The Zsambek ruins are a remarkable relic of the Gothic period. The naveof the church, thickly over-grown by juniper-bushes, is an admirableplace for a duel, where two men, unseen by any outsider, can fire at oneanother to their hearts' content.

  The officers tethered their steeds to a birch stem, and withdrew insidethe ruins so that their presence should not be remarked by the peopleworking in the fields.

  Meantime, Raby had awakened and was making his way to the ruins. Nor didhe need a guide, for they had been well known to him since his boyhood.

  It was yet half an hour to the promised rendezvous, so he just wanderedround through the brushwood, which surrounded the church, listening forshots. Perhaps the masonry dulled the sound, but surely he would see thesmoke, yet he could neither see nor hear anything.

  At last the remaining five minutes were up, and he strode into theruins. So well had he calculated time and distance, that the hand of hiswatch pointed close on ten, as he pushed aside the juniper-bushes whichhid the entrance to the ruins, and went in.

  "Karcsataji has not yet appeared," said Lievenkopp. "Punctuality is nothis strong point."

  "I fancy he doesn't mean to come."

  "Surely that is not thinkable! In that case we will just go for him inhis own house."

  "Now, meantime, what do you propose doing?"

  "Well, I think that we might get on with our own business and not waitfor him. By delay he has lost his right of precedence, and must take thesecond place. I propose, gentlemen, therefore, that we take the secondappointment first."

  After a short discussion, the seconds agreed, and since the nature ofthe quarrel barred all idea of reconciliation, they staked out thebarriers, and placed the opponents against the two opposite walls.

  The weapons which the seconds handed to them, were a pair of rough oldriding pistols, which were so constructed that the bullets fired into agroup of ten men, would have probably perforated the cloak of one of theparty, provided he had one on. The combatants shot at first atfive-and-twenty paces; they were honestly bent on hitting one another,yet neither succeeded. At the second attempt they took aim at twentypaces, again without result.

  "Wretched weapons, these pistols!" growled the captain, "if I haven'tbrought down the vulture's nest in that wild pear-tree."

  "Perhaps mine are better," suggested Raby. "My uncle Leanyfalvy gavethem to me, and they are already loaded."

  So the seconds accepted Raby's weapons. One of them remarked, however,that the pistols were loaded to the muzzle, so that both of them, inthis case, would do well to stand behind a pillar, seeing if oneexploded, they would all be dead men, combatants and seconds alike.

  "It's quite safe," said Raby, "the powder is good, and the charge is nottoo strong; there are only three bullets in each charge."

  "Now then, fire! One, two, three."

  At "three" Raby's pistols cracked.

  Pistols loaded with three bullets have very often this peculiarity ofnot hitting the man they are fired at.

  After the two first terrible detonations everyone looked round extremelyamazed that he and the rest were still alive.

  "Re-load your pistols," cried one of the seconds, and they did so. Butwhen they were ready, an idea struck the other second.

  "Gentlemen, you have fired three times, and such being the case, honouris entirely satisfied.
It is my duty to suggest a reconciliation."

  The two antagonists looked at each other.

  Was it worth while to fight to the death over this matter? So withoutmore ado, they shook each other by the hand, and were friends.

  Now it would be Gyongyom Miska's turn, and he would have to reckon withtwo adversaries instead of one.

  So they waited on; yet he came not. What could be the reasons of hisdelay? Had a wheel come off? Could he not find the ruins?

  But these were a landmark, and even if he had gone astray, he must haveheard the shots.

  "He surely cannot be a coward," muttered Raby between his teeth, for hisnational pride was piqued by sundry contemptuous remarks the Austrianofficers began to let fall.

  At last they heard the trotting of horses' hoofs. He was coming then!

  The men rose from the sward whereon they had been lying, and listenedexpectantly.

  The trotting stopped at the ruined wall, and it was obvious that itbelonged to one horse only.

  Was it possible he would come alone, without seconds, thinking to findthem here in the village?

  After awhile there was the sound as of several horses' hoofs, but theseseemed as if they were going away, rather than nearing the ruins.

  "Friends," shouted Lievenkopp, "someone is stealing our horses!"

  And all four dashed out of the ruins.

  The captain had guessed rightly, their horses had been stolen.

  And the thief was Gyongyom Miska himself, who, mounted on his own fierycourser, was driving before him the officers' three horses tetheredtogether by their bridles.

  "Stop you scoundrel," cried the captain and Raby in unison.

  But he evidently had not the intention to run away. Fifty paces ahead hepulled up and let his horse caracole.

  His two grim adversaries subjected him now to a cross fire, for each ofthem had two pistols. First on one side, and then from the other theyfired, but not one of the shots so much as grazed the robber, for hishorse pranced about and turned round and round in such a bewildering waywhile his master was being aimed at, that all four shots missed theirmark.

  When the firing ceased the horse remained standing at a sound from hisrider, as if cast in bronze.

  Then Gyongyom Miska, raising his musket with one hand to his face, tookaim at both, and one bullet whistled through the captain's helmet andthe other sent Raby's cap flying from his head. Whereupon thehighwayman raised his tufted hat and cried, "So fights Gyongyom Miska!"

  And with that he switched his whip, cracking it right and left over thetethered horses, and galloped away with his prey.