CHAPTER XI
In vain Richard Wood and his men had scoured the forest near Doncaster.They found no trace of those they sought. "Did I believe, like some, inwitchcraft," declared Richard Wood, "so should I say there waswitchcraft in their escape. Why, what should a Saxon serving-man and aboy of fourteen know, that they should foil good men on a chase?"
"Ay," responded one of his men-at-arms, "but thou seest they have doneit. In this forest they are not. Mayhap they lie close in the town ofDoncaster."
Richard Wood looked at him reflectively. "I had not thought on that,"he said. "Mayhap thou art right. Go we into the town and see. We needrest, and bite, and sup, and the beasts also need the same."
So the weary four entered the town of Doncaster and drew rein beforethe Green Dragon Inn. And one of the grooms who took the horses was thesame vacant-faced, foolish fellow who had received the coin from WalterSkinner. "Here be more king's men," he said to himself, "and mayhapanother coin for me. I will send them also to the Isle of Axholme,where I judge sorrow hath met the other king's man, since the horseshoehad of the Evil One did come galloping back without a rider." And hesmiled ingratiatingly at Richard Wood, who took no notice of him.Whereat, somewhat crestfallen, he was fain to lead the horse away, theothers having been already taken care of by other grooms who had nothought of the Isle of Axholme, and no hopeful expectation of coins.
The morning that saw Hugo and Humphrey far on their way to Lincoln sawRichard Wood rise refreshed at the Green Dragon with his determinationto continue the chase well renewed. And that same morning it hadoccurred to the vacant-faced groom that he must speak now or never ifhe expected any reward for his speech. So the instant Richard Woodappeared in the inn yard he sidled up to him and began, at the sametime knocking his grooming tools, which he still held in his hands,nervously together, an accompaniment to his speech, which seemed tosurprise the spy. "I did come from Gainsborough two nights agone," hesaid.
"That is naught to me, varlet," interrupted Richard Wood. "Get theeback to thy grooming."
"Yea, verily," insisted the groom; "but it is somewhat to thee," and heknocked the tools together in his hands at a great rate. "I did come bythe Isle of Axholme. And the other king's man did accuse me ofdrunkenness and revellings when I did begin to have speech with him ofthe matter, but he did change his mind, and give me a coin. Do thou butthe same and thou also mayest hear what I did see."
Richard Wood regarded him attentively. "Speak truth," he said, "and saythat I would hear, and thou shalt have two coins."
The vacant-faced groom grinned a broad and foolish grin. "Said I not,"he cried joyfully, "that thou wert a better man than the other? For hewas but small and fierce and hath met sorrow, or his horse had not comeback riderless."
Richard Wood smiled contemptuously at this reference to Walter Skinner.Then he said: "Thou didst come by the Isle of Axholme. What sawest thouthere?"
"Why, thou canst talk like an advocate," said the foolish groom, whohad never seen an advocate in his life. "Ay," he continued, "he thatgiveth two coins is ever a better master than he that giveth one. And Idid see a young lord and his serving-man lie on a bed of rushes; andever and anon the serving-man did rise to feed the blazing fire ofreeds; and it was the fire I first did see, and, going to the fire, Idid see them."
"The Isle of Axholme lieth eighteen miles long and five in breadth,"said Richard Wood. "Where didst thou see them?" and he held up threecoins.
"Toward the south end on a little solid place which hath on it threescrubby trees. There did they lie." And the groom left off speaking toeye the money in ecstasy, for not often did such wealth come his way.
Richard Wood tossed him the coins. "Make haste with the horses," hesaid. "Hast thou no other marks to know the place?"
"Why, nay," answered the groom, regretfully. "But thou wilt surely knowit when thou comest to it," and he smiled broadly.
Ten minutes later the party was off, and, crossing the Don at the town,found themselves in the Isle of Axholme. And then Richard Wood pausedto give his men instructions. "Here do we need caution," he said. "Thisfellow is not easily to be caught, for I make naught of the young lord.He is doubtless some trusty retainer sent with the lad by her ladyshipbecause he hath wit to hide and double on his track and so bafflepursuit. But he hath not yet reached port to set sail for France, andmayhap he will not. It remaineth now for us to hide and creep among therushes and reeds and scrubby trees, and so come up with him unseen."
The men-at-arms listened respectfully, and the party separatingthemselves so that each man rode alone at a little distance from hisfellows, they took the same general direction, and so advanced slowlyand carefully, taking advantage of every bit of cover in their way, andoften pausing to listen. They had proceeded in this manner some twohours when Richard Wood saw the three scrub trees, and, waving thesignal to his men, the advance was made with renewed caution. At lastall were near enough to see the couch of rushes and the ashes of thefire, but they saw nothing of serving-man or boy, who by this time hadreached Lincoln. Silently, at a signal from Richard Wood, the partydrew together. "Ye see," said he, pointing to the place, "that they benot here. Either they be gone roaming about for the day in search offood, or they be gone altogether. We may not know of a surety tillevening when, if they be not altogether gone, they will return. If theybe gone, we have lost a day and given them an added start of us.Wherefore I counsel that we pursue the search warily through the Islein the hope that we come up with them. What say ye?"
"We say well," responded the men.
The party now separated again, and, going even more slowly than beforethrough the silent Isle, sought to be as noiseless as possible. Butevery now and then some horse splashed suddenly and heavily into apool, or scrambling out of the water crunched and broke the reeds andscared the water-fowl, which rose shrieking and flew noisily away. Atsuch mishaps Richard Wood restrained his impatience as well as he wasable, knowing that they were unavoidable and that his men werefaithful. Thus another hour went by and there was no trace of thefugitives. They were now going due northwest, and a half-hour later oneof the men-at-arms gave the signal. Silently Richard Wood approachedhim. "I did see one of them," said the man in a low tone. "He liethbeneath a tree beyond this fringe of reeds on the next solid place."
And now Richard Wood was all excitement. "Which was it?" he asked; "theyoung lord or the serving-man?"
"Why, thou knowest I did never see either," replied the man, "and Icould not draw very near. But the person I did see did seem too smallto be the stout Saxon serving-man of whom thou hast spoken."
Without a word, but with his face expressing great triumph, RichardWood waved to the others to approach, which they did slowly and withcare. Having come up with him, he communicated to them the news he hadreceived, and, bidding them scatter in such a manner as to surround thelittle place on which the fortunate man-at-arms had discovered the manor boy lying, he waited with such patience as he could muster until thetime had elapsed necessary for the carrying out of his commands, andthen advanced to capture the young lord with his own hands. And whatwas his disgust, when he came up with the sleeper under the tree, tofind Walter Skinner.
"And is it thou, Walter Skinner?" he demanded when he had roused him."And what doest thou here?"
Richard Wood finds Walter Skinner]
"Ay, Richard Wood, it is I. And what I do here is no concern of thine.Here have I been a day and a night and this second day. Little have Ihad to eat, and my drinking-horn is but now empty. And I have beenplanted in a miry pool. And I have lost my horse and my way also; andhave floundered into more bogs and out of them than can be found in allRobert Sadler's Ireland. Were I king, I would have no Isle of Axholmein all my dominions. Could I do no better, I would pull down the hillof Lincoln and cart it hither to fill these vile water-holes. Do butsee my doublet and hose. Were I called suddenly to the palace would notthe king and the court despise me as a drunken ruffler from somerevel-rout that had fallen from his horse? When all the blam
e is to belaid on this Isle of Axholme, which ought, by right, to belong toFrance, since it is full of frogs."
"Thou art crazed, as thou always art when thou drinkest," said RichardWood, coldly.
"Dost thou say I have been drinking?" demanded Walter Skinner, startingup.
"Yea, I say it. Thou sayest it also. For thou didst say thydrinking-horn was but now empty."
"Yea, verily," answered Walter Skinner. "If thou be a true man do butfill it for me again. Or lead me from this vile place, where oneheareth naught but the squawk of birds and the croak of frogs. I wouldfain see the Green Dragon and the idiot groom that did send me here. Iwarrant thee I will crack his pate for him."
"Where is thy horse?" asked Richard Wood.
"Ay, where is he? Who but that vile serving-man did bid the young lordcut him loose?"
"Thou dreamest," said Richard Wood, incredulously. "Would a serving-manforget his station and bid his master do a task?"
"Ay, would he, if he were this serving-man. I tell thee he would bidthe king himself do a task if he chose, and, moreover, the king wouldobey. 'Twas he did plant me in the miry pool and say I did dance wellbut somewhat slowly when I did try to unplant myself, and for everyfoot I took up sunk the other deeper in the mire. And he did dub me'Sir Stick-in-the-Mud,' moreover, for which I do owe him a grudge andwill requite him. I will meet him one day where there be no miry pools,and then let him beware." This last he uttered with a look which wasintended to be fierce, but which was only silly.
"Didst thou come after them alone with no man to help thee?" askedRichard Wood, still more incredulously.
"Oh, I did have help enough," was the answer, with a crafty look. "Idid have to my help a yew bow with a silken string that the kinghimself need not despise, and a great store of arrows, moreover. And Idid hide and bide my time until the darkness of night came and the fireblazed high. And then I did let my arrows fly. And what did theserving-man? He did catch up the very fire and rush upon me. And laterhe did break my arrows and cut my bow-string, and fling my bow into thewater, and then departed, I know not where."
"Thou art but a sorry fool," declared Richard Wood, after some thought."And yet I cannot find it in my heart to leave thee here. Mount upbehind me, and at Gainsborough I will set thee down. There canst thoushift for thyself, and chase or forbear to chase as thou choosest."
"Ay, thou sayest truly," said the half-drunken Walter Skinner. "Andshould I now forbear to chase, a dukedom would no more than reward mefor the perils I have seen. First in the lofty tree watching thecastle; and thou knowest that now, when, from the interdict, no bellsmay ring to disperse the tempests, I might have died from the lightningstroke, not once but many times. For there might have been a tempestand lightning every day, and no thanks to the king that there was not.Then, too, I did encounter perils from the boughs which might havebroken and did not. And wherefore did they not? Because they were tootough and sound. And this, too, moreover, was no thanks to the king.And two horses have I lost,--one mine own and one the gift of the priorof St. Edmund's. And did the prior wish to give me the beast? Nay, hedid not, and would have refused it if he had dared. He made as if hegave it because of the king, but he did not. He feared before me, aswell he might. For I had met a hedgehog, and when a man is in such acase he is in no mind to have a horse refused him by a fat prior. Andall this also was no thanks to the king. And then I did meet thatvarlet of a groom at the Green Dragon, and he did send me here. Andhere have I met such misfortunes as would last a man his lifetime."
To all this Richard Wood had lent but half an ear, being occupied inturning over in his mind the fact that Hugo and Humphrey had been inthe Isle and had gone, and trying to decide what was best to do. He nowlooked at him. "Mount up behind me and cease thy prating," he said.Then turning to the men-at-arms he continued: "We go hence toGainsborough. From thence down to Sherwood Forest. It seemeth thisserving man loveth woods and wilds. Therefore it were waste of time toseek for him in towns and beaten ways."
All the while he was speaking Walter Skinner, with many groans, wastrying to mount behind his old companion; but, on account of the horseshying his objections to such a proceeding, and the drunken clumsinessof Walter Skinner himself, nothing had been accomplished. Richard Woodtherefore called on one of the men-at-arms to dismount and hoist himup; which he did much as if the fierce little spy had been a bag ofmeal, and much to Walter Skinner's discomfort, who suddenly foundhimself heavily seated with one leg doubled up under him and with abumped face where he had struck against Richard Wood's shoulder. Hesoon righted himself, however, and, clinging to his old friend, rodeaway to Gainsborough.