Rose D'Albret; or, Troublous Times.

  CHAPTER XVI.

  The night was as black as Acheron. The rain poured down in torrents.The melting of the snow rendered the roads in the lower parts one massof mud and water, while the higher ground, where the temperature wascolder, afforded nothing but a slippery and uncertain footing for thehorses, over which they had the greatest difficulty in making theirway. There was no possibility of seeing more than four or five yardsin advance; the wind blew the falling deluge in the eyes of the wholeparty; and the heart of Louis de Montigni sank, when he thought of allthat Rose d'Albret was exposed to for his sake. He strove to cheerher, however, as she rode beside him; he guided and supported herhorse in all the more difficult parts of the way; and often heexpressed his fears and apprehensions regarding her, almost regrettingthat any inducement had led him to bring her forth in such a night asthat.

  Rose spoke little in return, for her heart was too full of manifoldsensations, her mind too busy with thought for many words; but allthat she did say was kind, and even cheerful; for she perceivedclearly his deep anxiety for her, and strove to lighten the load asmuch as possible. She assured him that she did not mind the tempest,that she was accustomed to endure such things frequently, that herjennet was the most sure-footed beast on earth, that she doubted notthe sky would soon clear; and when she saw how he reproached himselffor all that she was enduring, she reassured him by expressing her joyand thankfulness at having escaped from an union, which every moment'sthought rendered more odious in her eyes. Thus they rode on for nearlyan hour and an half, sometimes slowly, sometimes rapidly, according tothe nature of the ground: the horsemen who accompanied them, keepingas close around them as possible, for even such a dark and stormynight was not without dangers of another kind, from the state ofturbulent anarchy into which the country was plunged.

  At length, however, the rain suddenly ceased; the air became hot andsultry; the wind died away; and Rose, turning to her lover, exclaimed,"I told you, Louis, it would be finer soon."

  Almost as she spoke, a bright blaze flashed over the whole sky,illuminating the prospect on every side, which had before been hiddenunder the dark veil of night. The trees of the forest on the right,the wide undulating country on the left, the village and the spire inthe distance, the valley into which they were descending in front,were all seen for a single instant, as clearly as if the day hadsuddenly dawned; while, across the very midst of the glare whichblazed over the whole heaven, was seen a thin and quivering line ofmore intense light, beginning near the zenith, and ending apparentlyat a tree, some two or three hundred yards in advance, several largelimbs of which, were seen falling to the earth, with a rending and acrashing sound, just as the darkness swept over the sky again, and allwas night once more.

  The horses started at the blaze; and Rose d'Albret covered her eyeswith her hand, while Louis de Montigni checked the speed at which theywere proceeding, saying, "We must go more slowly, dear Rose. This isunfortunate indeed."

  "It may be so, Louis," replied his fair companion, "but storm, andtempest, and the fierce turbulence of such a night as this, arenothing in my eyes, compared with the slow and lengthened misery of, ahome without affection, and the living death of, a marriage withoutlove."

  "Look! look, Sir! look!" cried one of the men, pointing forward to thesky: but the eyes of his master, and of all the party were alreadyfixed on the same spot, where, in the midst of the heaven, one of themost extraordinary phenomena of nature was suddenly presented to them.For a space of several degrees the clouds seemed to have rolled back,and were seen piled up, in enormous masses on either hand, like thescenes flanking a wide stage, while between them spread out an expanseof pale whitish light, with a red wavy streak below, resembling aplain which has caught the purple rays of the setting sun. On eitherhand, from amongst the masses of vapour, appeared to dash forth bodiesof fiery combatants, horse and foot mingled together, rushing,charging, overthrowing each other, now mixed in furious combat, nowseparating for a moment, now chasing each other over the field. Againand again the squadrons met, as if in deadly shock, and balls of fire,as of some unearthly cannonade, crossed the sky in the midst of thatstrange scene, till at length, while the fight seemed still going on,the clouds once more rolled over the whole, and all returned todarkness.[1]

  "This is very strange," exclaimed Louis de Montigni: "I have heard ofsuch a thing; but I never believed it before."

  "We shall have a battle soon, Sir," said one of the men. "I wish wecould have seen which party won the day."

  "The King's, to be sure," replied another; "did you not see how hedrove them back?"

  "And which do you call the King's?" asked the young Baron, smiling tosee how readily imagination had seized upon the strange sight they hadbeheld, to turn it to the purposes of superstition.

  "That on the right, Sir," answered the man. "The King has the right, Iam sure; and besides, I saw him in the front rank with a large plumein his casque."

  "My eyes were not so good," said De Montigni. "Did you ever see theKing, Hugh?"

  "Not I, Sir," replied the attendant; "but I am certain that was he,and his horse was as red as blood."

  His master said nothing in return, but rode on slowly, conversing in alow tone with Rose d'Albret, while from time to time the lightningflashed across their path, but less vividly than before; and ere longthe rain began to fall again, and the thunder ceased.

  Now came the most fatiguing part of the journey, for the narrow pathwhich they were following entered the hilly and wooded country aboutMontlandon and Champrond en Gatine, and they were forced to climb anddescend continually, over a road on which the snow was but half meltedand the mud up to the fetlocks of their horses, while still thetorrents poured down from the sky, drenching their garments throughand through. The wind had totally ceased, but the air was more sultryand close than ever; and both horses and riders suffered much from itsoppressive warmth.

  Rose d'Albret became silent from fatigue, for the agitation of thelast twenty-four hours now had its full effect upon her; and fearslest her bodily strength should give way, added to what she suffered.There is a calm and persevering endurance which goes far; there is alight-hearted and hopeful energy which carries one through innumerableevils; but the greatest burden upon all exertion is the fear offailing--if once we let apprehension take possession of us. Rose knewthat it is so, and she strove hard, for De Montigni's sake, to banishall such alarm; but the time seemed very weary, the way interminablylong. She looked anxiously for the first, grey light of morning. Morethan once--when at the bottom of a hill--she thought she saw somestreaks of light over the brow; and as often she was disappointed,till at length, as they issued forth from a thick forest that then laybetween Marolles and the edge of La Beauce, her lover exclaimedgladly, "There, there is the daylight, Rose;" and looking forward, sheperceived distinctly the faint hues of coming day stretching over theeastern sky, and the dark walls and towers of the castle of Montlandonon its wooded height, standing out in strong relief.

  That castle offers now nothing but a picturesque ruin to the eye ofthe passing traveller; but, at the time I speak of, it was inhabited;and a beacon fire on one of the turrets, waning in lustre with therising light, told that its owner took part for one side or the otherin the civil war.

  "If I remember right," said Louis de Montigni, speaking to the man whoacted as their guide, "that is Montlandon; cannot we get shelterthere?"

  "No, Sir, oh no!" replied the soldier. "We must change the colour ofour scarfs if we do; for Monsieur de Montlandon is furious for theUnion, and a great friend of Monsieur de Chazeul's."

  "That is unfortunate indeed," said De Montigni. "Alas! dear Rose, Ifear you are well nigh exhausted. Can you go on, my beloved?"

  "Oh, yes!" answered Rose, in as cheerful a tone as she could assume;"for another hour, Louis--or two, should it be needed."

  "It will not be safe to stop, Mademoiselle, till we get to LesCh?telets," observed the attendant, who was one of the old followersof the good Commander de Liancourt, "and that
is near three leagues;but the road is better here in Beauce; and we can go faster in thedaylight. But we had better use speed, Sir, and pass this village andChamprond before the people are awake, or we may find enemies."

  "With all my heart," cried Rose d'Albret; "this slow travelling in thedarkness is more fatiguing far than a quick pace;" and putting theirhorses into a brisk canter, they hurried through Montlandon, beforeany of the cottage windows showed signs of waking life. When theyreached Champrond, however, a good many of the villagers were standingout under the shelter of their doors. The greater part, indeed, seemedmore terrified at the sight of the body of horsemen, than desirous ofimpeding their progress, and retreated into their houses as soon asthe white scarfs appeared. But one stout blacksmith stood before hisforge, and shouted as they passed, "What news from the armies?"

  "The King has taken Dreux," replied one of the attendants, in the sameloud tone, "and is marching upon Chartres."

  "Curses on the Maheutre!" cried the blacksmith, and retired grumblinginto his dwelling.

  No opposition, however, was offered to their passage; and at a quickpace they hurried on; but the anxious eye of De Montigni saw thatRose's cheek was very pale, her fair head bent down, and the handwhich held her bridle resting on the pommel of the saddle, as if shecould hardly manage her reins.

  "Ah, dearest girl," he said, "let us stop at the first cottage. Youare faint,--you are ill."

  "No, no," she answered; "I can go on, Louis. I am somewhat tired, butI can go on," and in about five minutes more their guide exclaimed,

  "There is the Eure! We shall soon be safe!"

  Such words of encouragement revived the poor girl's strength for a fewminutes longer, till a hamlet, containing some half dozen houses,appeared a little to the left, and De Montigni, without furtherquestion, turned his horse's head thither, sprang to the ground at thedoor of the first cottage, and, throwing his arm round his faircompanion, lifted her from the saddle.

  Rose leaned upon his bosom, for she could not support herself; and,raising her in his arms, he carried her into the hut, where they founda peasant and his young wife taking their early meal. The good peopleof this place seemed to know little, or care little, of Royalists andLeaguers. They were of the best party, the party of human nature; andthe young woman rose eagerly from the table, with expressions ofkindly compassion, to assist poor Rose d'Albret, laid her upon her ownbed, all dripping as she was, and insisted upon making her put on someof her own apparel, while she dried the lady's wet garments at thefire. Fatigue and exhaustion, however, were the greatest evils underwhich Rose was suffering; and De Montigni eagerly asked for wine, asher pale cheeks and bloodless lips showed him how faint she felt.

  "Here is cyder," said the peasant, "but that is poor stuff for such alady; and wine we have none."

  "Run, Victor, run down to the priest's," cried his wife; "you will getwine there."

  "Or at Master Leger's," answered the cottager; "he has better winethan the priest."

  "I will go myself," cried De Montigni. "Come with me, good man; and,while we are gone, your wife can undress the lady and assist her tobed. A few hours' repose will do her much good."

  "I am better now, Louis," said Rose d'Albret, stretching out her handto him; "do not leave me long. I am afraid of some one coming whileyou are gone."

  "I will be but an instant, dearest Rose," replied her lover, "and inthe meanwhile our people shall remain round the house. You had bettertake off your wet clothes, dear one;" and he added, with a faintsmile, "I have no title to be present at your toilette yet."

  The colour came faintly into her cheeks again; and, once morepromising not to be many minutes absent, the young nobleman hurriedaway with the peasant, closing the door behind him, and bidding theattendants remain on guard before the house till he returned.

  At the end of the little straggling hamlet stood a house with aprojecting pole, from which was suspended a withered bush, givingclear indication that there was the place where village festivals,marriages, and merry makings, usually were celebrated. Here sometolerable wine was easily procured, and, hurrying back with it, DeMontigni was soon by the side of her he loved, who, now stretched onthe low bed of the good peasants, had already somewhat recovered therosy look of health, and spoke cheerfully to him of being soon able toproceed.

  But De Montigni did not feel so confident of Rose's powers, andinquired anxiously of the peasants, whether any carriage or littercould be procured in the neighbourhood. Nothing of the kind, however,was to be heard of, and they assured him that to seek any conveyancebut a horse or a mule nearer than Chartres or Dreux, was quite out ofthe question. He then proposed to construct a litter in haste, butRose would not hear of it, declaring, that in an hour's time she wouldbe quite ready to pursue her journey on horseback; and, indeed, sheseemed so eager to go on, and so fearful of being overtaken, that shewould fain have risen even before an hour was over, declaring that shehad had rest enough. De Montigni, however, persuaded her to remain forhalf an hour longer; and, going out of the door with their young host,he made some inquiries regarding the state of the country in theneighbourhood, and the best road he could follow towards Dreux.

  The replies he received were not altogether satisfactory. Severallarge bodies of men, the peasant said, had passed through the villagethe day before; but whether they were Royalists or Leaguers he couldnot well tell, as he took no great heed of such things, and thesoldiers had passed on without stopping, even to drink. One corps hadtaken up its quarters for the night, he heard, in a village about aleague and a half farther on; but every fact he mentioned showed theyoung nobleman that it would be needful to use every precaution,during their onward journey, in order to avoid falling into the handsof the Leaguers. For this purpose, he determined to send forward oneof the attendants, with directions to keep about half a mile inadvance of the rest of the party, while another preceded them by aboutthree hundred yards, so that early intelligence might be obtained ofany approaching danger. A man, too, was left to follow at a littledistance behind, for the purpose of guarding against being overtakensuddenly by any party of pursuers from the Ch?teau of Marzay, thoughDe Montigni had good hope that the speed with which they travelled,had removed all risk of such an event.

  Everything being prepared, all orders given, the horses refreshed andfed, and Rose d'Albret dressed in the clothes which had been driedbefore a large wood fire, she was once more placed upon the back ofher jennet, and, at a slower pace than before, they again set out upontheir journey, after De Montigni had amply paid for all that he hadtaken. At a distance of about a mile from the village, the man who hadbeen thrown forward, returned to say, that the ropes of the ferry-boatover the Eure had been cut by the soldiers, as they passed on thepreceding day, and that they must go further up the stream to seek aford.

  The weather, however, had become somewhat finer. The rain had ceased,except a few drops from a flying cloud, now and then. Rose looked andspoke cheerfully, and seemed really to have recovered from the fatigueshe had undergone; the fear of being overtaken had grown fainter withevery league they had advanced; and though the Eure was somewhatflooded by the rains that had fallen, they soon found a ford. Themarks of horses' feet showed that some persons had passed not longbefore, and, causing the whole of his little troop to keep on theleft, in order to break the force of the water, De Montigni led overthe lady's jennet, without much difficulty, and gained the oppositebank.

  This obstacle overcome, they proceeded for half an hour more withoutencountering any fresh impediment; and, giving way to hope and love,they talked of future happiness and bright days to come, and gave wayto all the dreams that visit the young heart in the season of fancyand expectation, and clothe the coming years with all the glitteringgarments of imaginary joy. They were both too young, they were bothtoo inexperienced not to feel the heart rise the moment that dangerand apprehension ceased; and, to say truth, though Hope may be--as sheis often too justly called--an untiring deceiver, yet, even in themidst of her false promises, she c
onfers real and inestimablebenefits, giving us strength to endure and courage to go on, whichnone of the truer and more substantial things of life can afford.

  Thus the happy dreams in which Rose d'Albret and her lover indulged,during that brief half hour, comforted and refreshed her more than therepose she obtained at the cottage; but the pleasant moments were sooninterrupted. At the end of the time we have named, the man who wasfarthest in advance rode back at speed to the one behind him, and,taking his place, sent him back to tell De Montigni that a body ofsome two hundred horse were moving over the country before them, inthe direction of Tremblay. The first soldier had halted; and, ridingup with the man who served them as guide, De Montigni asked him, withsome anxiety, if he had been seen. The reply was in the negative; anda consultation was held as to what course should now be pursued, inorder to avoid encountering the party which he had observed. It was atlength determined to take the cross roads to the east, and, once morethe Eure, to endeavour to reach the King's camp at Dreux, from theside of Paris.

  "We shall have better roads there, Sir," said their guide, "and shallrun less risk; for the country about Hauteville, Poigny, Epernon, andMaintenon generally holds for the King."

  "It will lengthen the way," replied De Montigni; "and I fear forMademoiselle d'Albret."

  "Oh, do not think of me, Louis," exclaimed Rose; "if it is a saferroad, it will seem to me a shorter one."

  "Besides, Monsieur le Baron," rejoined the guide, "we can rest as longas we like at Nogent Leroy, for it has always been loyal; and, thoughlittle more than a village, it defended itself against the Chevalierd'Aumale and three hundred of the League. We can reach it in less thantwo hours."

  "Then let us thither with all speed," answered De Montigni; "for therewe shall find safety and repose combined, dear Rose."

  This plan was accordingly followed; and, in less than the timementioned Nogent Leroy was reached, without any further peril orimpediment. Though, as the guide had described it, the place was infact but a village, yet gates, and freshly erected barricades gave itat that time the air of a town; and the marks of musket-balls, in thewood-work of the palisade, showed that it had been fiercely attackedand had shown a gallant resistance. The little party was stopped for amoment at the barriers, but the white scarfs worn by De Montigni'smen, and the answer of "Vive le Roi!" to the "Qui vive?" of the guard,soon obtained them admission; and, riding on down the street, theyreached a small but clean and neat looking inn, over the door of whichwas written the usual inscription, "Lodging for man and horse."

  The host came out to meet them, showed them into a room strewed withrushes, called forth his wife in eager and imperative tones to waitupon the lady, and began in the same breath to ask tidings of hisguests, and to communicate all the information which he himselfpossessed. The intelligence he afforded indeed was much more importantthan any that De Montigni could supply in return; for the very firstnews he gave imported, that a battle might be expected every hour,that the two armies must be within a few leagues of each other, andthat parties of Leaguers and Royalists were hurrying up from everyquarter to swell the ranks of Mayenne and the King.

  These tidings somewhat startled De Montigni and his fair companion;but the host, who was an eager Royalist, spoke so confidently of thecertain defeat of the League and the triumph of the King, that theapprehension of fresh dangers and difficulties, which the intelligencehad at first produced, soon died away; and De Montigni, turning to herhe loved as soon as they were alone, pressed her hand in his, saying,"God send the King good success, dear Rose: but even if it should beotherwise, which I will not believe we can but pursue our flightsomewhat further, and the very hurry and confusion of such events willserve to conceal us from the eyes of those we have most cause tofear."

  Rose indeed could scarcely view the matter so cheerfully; but shewould not show her apprehensions, and only asked what course her loverwould pursue, if it should be found that a battle had been fought andlost by the King, before they reached his camp.

  "That cannot well be, dear Rose," replied De Montigni; "for I trust weshall reach his camp to-night. They say he has raised the siege ofDreux, and is now at Annet. You can take three or four hours' resthere, and yet reach that place before dark. We must do so, ifpossible; for in case of success we shall then be free from danger:and in case of reverse we shall have the means of judging in whatdirection to turn our steps. If further flight should be necessary,which heaven forbid! I know that my own dear Rose will not hesitate togive me her hand at once, to remove all chance of separation; and Iwould fain obtain the King's written sanction to our union, to obviateall difficulties, before a battle takes place--the event of which isalways doubtful."

  He held Rose's hand in his as he spoke; and, though she bent down hereyes under his eager gaze, she gave no sign of hesitation orreluctance. Yet he could not be satisfied without full consent; and heasked, "Shall it not be so, dear Rose? Will you not be mine at once?"

  "I am yours, De Montigni," replied Rose d'Albret in a low tone. "Youwill never ask ought that is wrong, I am sure; so that I may wellpromise to grant whatever you do ask. But I hope we shall find theKing, and that he will win the day, and then I may be yours openly andhappily, and not in flight, and dread, and concealment."