Chapter 59
It was only a clean cut, especially where I divided the skin and let out the ball. By George! though, the young rascal could bear a bit of pain."
"But do you mean to tell me that he could escape alone with a wound like that to disable his arm?"
"Oh yes. It would hurt him terribly; but a lad with plenty of courage would grin and bear that, and get away all the same. I'm glad of it."
"What! Glad the prisoner has escaped?"
"Oh, I don't mean that," said the doctor. "I mean glad he had so much stuff in him. It was a clever bit of acting, and shows that he must have the nerve of a strong man. I beg his pardon, for last night I thought him as weak as a girl for making so much fuss over a mere scratch. It was all sham, that insensibility. I knew in a moment--you remember I said so to you when we went away."
The captain nodded.
"But I thought it was the weak, vain, young c.o.xcomb making believe so as to pose as a hero who was suffering horribly."
"But once more," cried Captain Murray warmly, "do you mean to tell me that, with one arm disabled, that boy could have managed to escape from the window without help?"
"To be sure I do. Give him a pretty good sharp, cutting pain while he was using his arm. Did you hear him cry out, Gowan?"
"No, sir," said Frank sharply; and he turned angrily upon the captain: "You said something very harsh about Drew Forbes not being able to get away without help. You don't think I helped him to get away?"
"Yes, I do, boy," said the captain, with soldierly bluntness. "I think you must have known he wanted to escape, and that you helped him to get out of the window; and I consider it a miserably contemptible return for the kindness of your father's old friend."
"It is not true, Captain Murray," cried Frank hotly. "You have no right to doubt my word. Doctor, I a.s.sure you I did not know till I woke this morning, when I was utterly astonished."
"And ran to the door, and gave notice to the sentry," said Captain Murray coldly.
"No, I did not do that. I see now that I ought to have done so, and I was hesitating about it when you both came. But I had only just found it out then."
"And I suppose I shall be called to account for letting him go," said the captain bitterly. "Why didn't you go with him? Were you afraid?"
"Oh, come, come, Murray," cried the doctor reproachfully; "don't talk so to the boy. He's speaking the truth, I'll vouch for it. Afraid? Rob Gowan's boy afraid? Pooh! he's made of the wrong sort of stuff."
"Yes, sir," cried the boy, in a voice hoa.r.s.e with emotion, "I was afraid,--not last night, for I did not know he was going; but when he begged and prayed of me to run away with him, and join the people rising for the Pretender, I was afraid to go and disgrace my mother and father--and myself."
"Well done! well said, Frank, my lad!" cried the doctor, taking him by one hand to begin patting him on the back. "That's a knock down for you, Murray. Now, sir, you've got to apologise to our young friend here--beg his pardon like a man."
"If I have misjudged him, I beg his pardon humbly--like a man," said Captain Murray coldly. "I hope I have; but I cannot help thinking that he must have been aware of his companion's flight. Mr Gowan, your parole is at an end, sir. You will keep closely to these rooms."
"Bah!" cried the doctor; "why don't you say you are going to have him locked up in the black hole. Murray, I'm ashamed of you. It's bile, sir, bile, and I must give you
"I am going now, doctor," said the captain coldly.
"Which means I am to come away, if I don't want to be locked up too.
Very well, I have nothing to do here. There, shake hands, Frank. Don't you mind all this. He believes this now; but he'll soon see that he is wrong, and come back and shake hands. Your father knew how to choose his friends when he chose Captain Murray. He's angry, and, more than that, he's hurt, because he thinks you have deceived him; but you have not, my lad. Doctors can see much farther into a fellow than a soldier can, and both of your windows are as wide-open and clear as crystal.
There, it will be all right."
He gave the boy's shoulder a good, warm, friendly grip, and followed the captain out of the room. The door was locked, some orders were given to the sentry, Frank heard the descending steps, and after standing gazing hard at the closed door for some minutes he dropped into the chair by the table, the one in which he had had such a struggle to keep awake.
Then he placed his arms before him, and let his head go down upon them, feeling hot, bitter, and indignant against Captain Murray, and as if he were the most unhappy personage in the whole world.
A quarter of an hour must have pa.s.sed before he started up again with a proud look in his eyes.
"Let him--let everybody think so if they like," he said aloud. "I don't care. She'll believe me, I know she will. Oh! if I could only go to her and tell her; but I can't. No," he cried, in an exultant tone; "she knows me better and I know she'll come to me."
CHAPTER THIRTY TWO.
A BIG WIGGING.
"I won't show that I mind," thought Frank; and in a matter-of-fact way he went into the bedroom, and made quite a spiteful use of the captain's dressing table and washstand, removing all traces of having pa.s.sed the night in his clothes, and he had just ended and changed his shoes, which had been brought there, when the outer door was unlocked, and the captain's servant came in to tidy up the place.
The servant was ready to talk; but Frank was in no talking humour, and went and stood looking out of the window till the man had gone, when the boy came away, and began to imitate Andrew Forbes's caged-animal-like walk up and down the room, in which health-giving exercise to a prisoner he was still occupied when there were more steps below--the tramp of soldiers, the guard was changed, and Frank felt a strong desire to look out of the window to see if another sentry was placed there; but he felt too proud. It would be weak and boyish, he thought; so he began walking up and down again, till once more the door was unlocked, and the captain's servant entered, bearing a breakfast tray, and left again.
"Just as if I could eat breakfast after going through all this!" he said sadly. "I'm sure I can't eat a bit." But after a few minutes, when he tried, he found that he could, and became so absorbed in the meal and his thoughts that he blushed like a girl with shame to see what a clearance he had made.
The tray was fetched away, and the morning pa.s.sed slowly in the expectation that Lady Gowan would come; but midday had arrived without so much as a message, and Frank's heart was sinking again, when he once more heard steps, and upon the door being opened, Captain Murray appeared.
"He has come to say he believes me," thought the boy, as his heart leapt; but it sank again upon his meeting his visitor's eyes, for the captain looked more stern and cold than ever, and his manner communicated itself to the boy.
"You will come with me, Gowan," said the captain sternly.
"Where to?" was upon the boy's lips; but he bit the words back, and swallowed them. He would not have spoken them and humbled himself then for anything, and rising and taking his hat, he walked out and across the courtyard, wondering where he was being taken, for he had half expected that it was to the guardroom to be imprisoned more closely.
But a minute showed him that the growing resentment was unnecessary, for he was not apparently to submit to that indignity; and now the blood began to flush up into his temples, for he grasped without having had to ask where his destination was to be.
In fact, the captain marched him to the foot of the great staircase, past the guard, and into the long anteroom, where he spoke to one of the attendants, who went straight to the door at the end leading into the Prince's audience chamber.
And now for a few moments the captain's manner changed, and he bent his head down to whisper hastily:
"The Prince has sent for you, boy, to question you himself. For Heaven's sake speak out frankly the simple truth. I cannot tell you how much depends upon it. Recollect this: your mother's future is at stake, and--"
The attendant reappeared, came to him, and said respectfully:
"His Royal Highness will see you at once."
There was no time for the captain to say more--no opportunity offered for Frank to make any indignant retort concerning the truth. For the curtain was held back, the door opened, and Captain Murray led the way in, slowly followed by his prisoner, who advanced firmly enough toward where the Prince sat, his Royal Highness turning his eyes upon him at once with a most portentous frown.
"Well, sir," he said at once, "so I find that I have fresh bad news of you. You are beginning early in life. Not content with what has pa.s.sed, you have now turned traitor."
The Prince's looks, if correctly read, seemed to intimate that he expected the boy to drop on his knees and piteously cry for pardon; but to the surprise of both present he cried indignantly:
"It is not true, your Royal Highness."
"Eh? What, sir? How dare you speak to me like this?" cried the Prince.
"I have heard everything about this morning's and last night's business, and I find that I have been showing kindness to a young viper of a traitor, who is in direct communication with the enemy, and playing the spy on all my movements so as to send news."
"It is not true, your Highness!" cried the boy warmly. "You have been deceived. Just as if I would do such a thing as that!"
"Do you mean to pretend that this young Forbes, your friend and companion, is not in correspondence with the enemy?"
"No, your Royal Highness," said the lad sadly.