The Red Tavern

  CHAPTER XXIV

  OF HOW SIR RICHARD PLAYED THE KING IN HIS LITTLE KINGDOM

  Sir Richard broke his fast in the main room below, sitting by thefire in the broad chimney. He concluded that the chamber to which hehad been assigned upon the first night of his visit to the Red Tavernwas now surrendered to the uses of the ladies; it being the only one,so far as he could see, that could boast of a coating of mortar. Thewalls of the remaining rooms abounded in cracks and crannies, thewhich admitted the chill blasts in discomforting volumes. To theweary young knight, the roaring blaze by the table's side was a mostagreeable accompaniment to a very excellent repast. Often afterwardit recurred to Sir Richard that he ate during that day because of anhabitual predilection to line his inwards. In solemn truth, however,the wine set before him seemed without hint of zest or bouquet, andthe toothsome viands provided by Zenas might as well have been so muchsawdust for all the taste that Sir Richard got out of them withal.

  With the sun drawing toward the zenith, the earth warmed into asemblance of balminess, and the young knight loitered about outsidein the hope that Rocelia would walk out presently to take the air. Itentered Sir Richard's whirling head that the hunchback had divinedthe cause of his excessive restlessness; the which the impetuousyoung knight resented by soundly tongue-lashing the fellow. He scarceanswered Sir Richard a word, but received his acrimonious outburst withqueer leers, and winks, and knowing smiles. The young knight was fairtempted to take the flat of his sword to him.

  "I fear me much that Isabel has soured thy accustomed sweet temper ...sire," Zenas said, with an intonation that was unmistakably satirical.The young knight noted that this was the first occasion upon which thecrook-back had actually avowed him sovereign.

  "Ah! and right willingly would I play the king," Sir Richard thought,"an I could but wield empire over one dear subject. And why not,forsooth?" his ruminations carried him along. "By'r Lady! who's toprevent me from asserting my sovereignty by commanding this young womanto be summoned into my presence?"

  It was as Sir Richard was striding toward the tavern door to carry outhis mad project that he glimpsed Rocelia through an upper window. Shelooked out upon him, inclining her head and smiling. Deferentially SirRichard doffed his helm, his courage vanishing from him like rime on amid-August day. The young knight noted that she was wearing a gown ofsaffron velvet.

  Then, quickly entering the tavern, Sir Richard commanded Zenas to fetchhim ink, paper and a quill. "Henceforth," said he to himself, "I'llsurely play the king; and here shall be my kingdom." But he made up hismind to temper his rule in the meantime with somewhat of diplomacy andcunning.

  "Summon Harold hither," said he to the hunchback; "I'll have speech ofhim."

  Directing the note which he then wrote jointly to dame Sutherland andRocelia, he gave it into the foot-boy's hands and bade him to deliverit at their door. Then, going outside, he directed the groom to traphis stallion; whereupon he started swiftly northward along the forestroad. Glancing backward as he swept around the point of the brae, SirRichard was pleased to discover both of the ladies at the window wavinghim their adieux.

  It was well along in the afternoon when the young knight arrived atthe inn where Tyrrell was lying. Stretching east and west from thelittle building were long, double lines of white tents. The inn-keeperhad established him a tap-room in the stable, the which was crowdedwith boisterous, brawling soldiers. It reminded Sir Richard of anotherBabel, so varied were their manners of speech.

  Within the tavern, however, all was orderly and quiet, with a strongreek of medicines in every corner. For long the young knight seatedhimself by Tyrrell's bed, the while Sir James stormed and raved in afrightful delirium of fever; cursing King Richard III.; describing thehorrible tortures to which his brother had been put; condemning Henryfor a base usurper, and railing against Douglas and his traitorousdefection. It must have been a full hour before his mind merged intoa brief period of calm sanity. Coolly then he counted the pulsings ofhis heart, whereupon he told the young knight that he was sore feeble."'Twill be a week at least," he said, "ere the fever shall have runits course. If I am alive after that, perchance I might come safelythrough." He looked at the young knight askance when Sir Richard spoketo him of Rocelia, but gave him a word of cheer to deliver to her. Theyoung knight remained by Tyrrell's side till again the fever grippedhim; then took his way downstairs, bestrode his stallion, and clippedit along the pass toward his little kingdom.

  They must have been harkening eagerly for his coming, for Sir Richardfound the women both awaiting him in the main room.

  "How noble it is of thee, sire," said Rocelia sweetly, when Sir Richardhad repeated her father's message, "to bethink thee of our graveanxiety. How can we ever requite thee?" Whereupon she cast upon SirRichard a shy glance that repaid him upon that instant an hundred fold.

  The which, however, did not prevent the young knight from saying: "Bybearing me company at table, dear Rocelia. I have been dooms lonelythese two days gone."

  Sir Richard noted that Rocelia looked appealingly toward her grandam;and, by the same token, so did the young knight. But not appealingly,withal. He was not unmindful at that moment that he was indeed playingthe king.

  Sir Richard never afterward forgot that meal in the vague, warm lightof the chimney-corner; with Rocelia, in a rose-glow of maidenlyconfusion, seated where he could feast his eyes upon the delicatetransitions of expression upon her beautiful countenance. She wasgarbed in the robe a cutting of which was even then resting against hismuch disturbed heart, though the young knight lacked the resolutionto tell her so. Perhaps she knew it though, he thought. Whereupon hebecame quite intoxicated with the knowledge that there existed betweenthem a bond of secret understanding. They talked, God knows of what, henever knew. The dame had fallen into a doze upon one of the high-backedbenches, for which blessing the young knight offered thanks toMorpheus. It gave them a good hour more together than they shouldlikely otherwise have had.

  Soon after that the good dame snored loudly once or twice and thenawakened suddenly from the noise of it. She rose immediately and beggedpermission to retire.

  "Dost thou not take the sun and air of the morning?" Sir Richard askedRocelia when they were about to leave.

  "When the men are not here, and good grandam is not suffering of agout," she answered. "I do so enjoy to wander through the forest, sire."

  "Then," said Sir Richard, "upon the morrow, wilt suffer me to be thyescort upon such an excursion?"

  There followed then a second triangular duel of the eyes. The resultwas similarly happy with the first.

  Sir Richard went contented and singing to his bed.

  For several glory-filled days thereafter it would be a walk withRocelia in the morning through the forest glades; after which theyoung knight would ride northward to seek tidings of her father'scondition. Times there were when it seemed impossible that he couldrecover. But, on the eighth day, Sir Richard found him wholly rationaland well quit of his fever.

  He would soon be upon his feet now, he told the young knight, in a weakwhisper. After that they would set out for Wales, he said, gatheringtheir forces along the way, and then march down on London. Sir Richardwas in no mind to say him yea or nay; his thoughts being every one uponRocelia. When Tyrrell learned of the young knight's daily ride to hissick-bed he rendered him the heartiest of thanks.

  "'Tis indeed seldom, sire," he said, "that an humble servant ispermitted the satisfaction of laboring for a grateful king."

  Tyrrell was once again become the shrewd and wily politician.

  Sir Richard remembered that all the way homeward (he called it homewithin his mind, it being the only place worthy of the name of which heknew), his heart was singing a merry lay within his breast, because ofthe good news he was carrying to Rocelia.

  What a joyous evening it was they spent together, sitting at the tablein the chimney-side with Dame Sutherland soundly sleeping upon thebench! Sir Richard insisted that Rocelia hum over song after song forhim; t
he which she did, trilling them low and sweet. At length shestruck upon the one for which he had been waiting; the song he hadheard steal out upon that lonely night when he was engaged with SirJames and Zenas in the task of burying the hound.

  When she had finished the last note Sir Richard told her of the weirdcircumstances surrounding his first acquaintance with it.

  Thereupon, for the first time, the young knight made bold to tellher that he had ever since that night carried that same song withinhis memory--and a certain cutting of saffron velvet next his heart(forgetting to mention, however, that part of the time when he had wornit above his eye).

  "Ah! sire," said Rocelia, "can it be that it is thou----" and thenshe paused with lips all of a quiver, her fair head turned toward theglowing fire.

  "Why!" said Sir Richard, "and did you not know, dear Rocelia, thatsince that night I have been avowed champion of yours?"

  "Sire----"

  "Call me not sire, dear. Name me Richard," the young knight whispered,trying vainly to imprison her hand. "God wot, an you still wish toleave, I will bear me away this time the proper maiden!"

  "Then ... was it indeed thou," Rocelia whispered, half weeping, halflaughing, "who bore away my cousin Isabel?"

  "Did you not know?" said Sir Richard.

  "I but knew that she had gone ... with some knight, I thought it was... and that it had been her choice to go. She was ever unhappy afterwe came from London. Oh! sire ... much do I regret that thou hast beenmade the target of one of her mad pranks."

  "Let me but once hear Richard on your lips, Rocelia," pleaded the youngknight.

  "I dare not," said she, with an affrighted glance toward her sleepinggrandam.

  "I lay command upon you," said Sir Richard feigning to be stern.

  "Well, then ... Richard," said she in the softest of whispers.

  Silence for a space.

  "It seems," said the young knight then, smiling, "that I have beenvictim of every madcap prank and conspiracy in all Scotland. What quipwas this of Isabel's?"

  "I should not have known, sire----"

  "Richard," the young knight corrected her gently.

  "Thou saidst but once ... Richard," she whispered, smiling. "I shouldnot have known, I say, had it not been for the piece of cloth snippedout of my robe. I was sleeping when she sent it through the wall."

  "And the note--said she something of a note, Rocelia?" Sir Richardasked.

  "No, nothing, sire."

  "Then here it is," said he, diving into the leathern pouch hanging athis baldric and laying the scrap of paper before Rocelia upon the tabletop. The while she was reading it Sir Richard got him out the cuttingof velvet.

  "And here is the other," he said, laying the crumpled bit of clothbeside the note, which by now Rocelia had finished reading. "This maygo to feed the blaze," he added with a light laugh, tossing the noteinto the fire. "The other ... may I have it now from thy dear hand? Iwould renew my knightly vows."

  "But thou art now a king ... and may not," she gave Sir Richard answer,he thought in a tone and manner of sadness and regret. Suddenly shetook it up then and thrust it quickly within the lace at her bosom.

  "But I am not a king, Rocelia ... or ever shall be," Sir Richardprotested. "That bit of yellow cloth it was that kept me posting backand forth above this barren, dreary country. It drew, and held mewilling prisoner here. Now I have lost it. To-morrow I will go."

  "But, no!" said she, "how canst thou leave when everything is waiting?Already hast thou been proclaimed."

  "Everything was waiting before I came," he answered. "When I amgone 'twill be as though Richard Rohan had never been. As to theproclamation ... 'twas but a thing of empty words. I played the kinghere, because thou wert of my kingdom. An I have not thee for subject,I am no longer monarch. To-morrow, I say, I take my leave of Scotland."

  "But, pray you, not to-morrow ... Richard," cried Rocelia aloud,clutching at the cloth upon the table.

  There was a look in her eyes that brought the young man bounding tohis feet. He had meant to gather her within his arms. But he swiftlyinterpreted her frightened backward glance in sufficient season totransform the gesture into a sweeping bow.

  Grandam Sutherland had but just awakened, and was blinking at the twoafter a confused fashion. She had been aroused by Rocelia's cry.

  "God's mercy upon us!" exclaimed the old lady; "it must be near uponthe stroke of eleven?"

  "An the weather hold, we'll walk to-morrow morning?" said Sir Richard,taking Rocelia's hand.

  "To-morrow morning, sire," she answered, softly pressing his fingers.

  The young knight slept no wink that night because of the tender caress.