CHAPTER V.
The game was still unfinished. The repeater of Alphonse D'Erlach was inhis hand, as he entered from his own chamber, and threw a hasty glanceacross the chess-board. There Laudonniere sate, seeing nothing but thepieces before him. He was in the brownest of studies. His thoughts werewholly with the game, which had the power of contracting his foreheadwith a more serious anxiety than possibly all the cares of his colonyhad done. His opponent was the very personification of well-satisfiedindifference. He leaned back in his seat, smiling grimly, and with awink, now and then, to those who watched and waited upon the movementsof Laudonniere. Alphonse D'Erlach smiled also. The slightest shade ofanxiety might be observed upon his brow, and his lips were more rigidlycompressed than usual. He leaned quietly towards the board, and remarkedindifferently--
"I see you are nearly at the close of your game."
"Indeed!" said Laudonniere, with some sharpness in his accents,--"andpray Monsieur Alphonse, how do you see that?"
"You will finish by twelve," was the reply. "I see that it now lacks buta few minutes of that hour."
"Pshaw, Monsieur!" exclaimed Laudonniere--"you talk illogically, youknow nothing about it. Chess is one of those games----"
And he proceeded to expatiate upon the latent resources of the game, andhow a good player might retrieve a bad situation in the last perilousextremity, by a lucky diversion.
"But there is no such extremity now," he continued to say, "and it isnot improbable that we shall keep up the struggle till morning. The gamecannot finish under an hour, let him do his best, even if he conquers inthe end, which is very far from certain, though I confess he has someadvantages."
"We shall see," was the reply, as Alphonse left the room, and returnedin a few moments after. It was not observed by the parties, so intentwere they on the game, that he now made his appearance in completearmor, nor did they hear the bustle in the adjoining apartment. Alphonsestill held his watch in his grasp.
"The game is nearly finished. According to my notion, you have but twominutes for it."
"Two! how!" said Laudonniere, not lifting his head.
"But one!"
"There!" said Laudonniere, making the move that Marchand hadanticipated. Marchand bent forward with extended finger to the whitequeen, when a shade of uneasiness might be traced by a nice observerin the countenance of D'Erlach. His lips were suddenly and closelycompressed. The hand of the timepiece was upon the fatal minute. On asudden, a hissing sound was heard, and, in the next instant, thehouse reeled and quivered as if torn from its foundation. A deep roarfollowed, as if the thunderbolt had just broke at their feet, and thewhole was succeeded by a deafening ringing sound in all their ears.
"Jesus--mercy!" exclaimed Laudonniere--"The magazine!"
"Checkmate!" cried Marchand, as he set down the white queen in the finalposition which secured the game.
"Ay! it is checkmate to more games than one! Gentlemen, to arms, andfollow me!" exclaimed Alphonse. "We are safe now!"