"Cripple though thou art, ’twill be as well to shackle thee. After all, ’tis an honour to treat thee as a man of sound limbs, so let that thought comfort thee ’gainst thy pleasant stay in the dungeons of Ruthènes. Come, Rolfe, pick up their swords and daggers, and let us be off to our beds. Long enough have we spent over this business." Sardonically bidding them good night, Duprez and his man left the chamber, carrying with them the torch and the weapons they had taken from their prisoners. The door clanged heavily to behind them, and Edgar and Peter were left in total darkness to think over their most perilous situation, and to wonder for how much of it they had to thank their old foe, Sir Gervaise de Maupas. *CHAPTER XIII* *Prisoners* Worn out and dispirited, Edgar and Peter sank to the floor and lay there motionless. Their sudden capture, after so successful a beginning, was a stunning blow, and though neither was easily discouraged, they needed time and thought to recover from it. After a time they grew drowsy, and presently forgot their troubles in sleep. When they awoke they judged it to be broad daylight. Their cell was still in semi-darkness, the only light that entered coming from a grating high up at the summit of the arched stone roof. This grating, Edgar calculated from his recollection of the trend of the passages they had traversed, was on a level with the flagstones of the courtyard. The priest had told Edgar something of the history of the castle, and from the appearance of the cell he came to the conclusion that the network of underground dungeons and passages belonged to its more ancient days, and had been left intact when it had been partially pulled down and rebuilt. The conclusion brought him little additional hope, for the walls were massively built of stone, and seemed to have been but slightly affected by the lapse of time. "Canst think of any plan, Peter, by which we may effect our escape?" asked Edgar, when he had carefully weighed all the chances in his own mind. "Nay, unless we can reach up to the grating by standing on one another’s shoulders." "With these shackles? I fear there is little hope there, unless we can first rid ourselves of these irons." "Yes, we must knock off our shackles first. As thou know’st, Master Edgar, I was an armourer’s assistant, and know something of chains and rivets. If there be any weak spots I can find them, and shall know how to deal with them. Had they left us but a dagger it would not have been long, I’ll warrant thee, before we moved our limbs in freedom."