The Child of the Moat: A Story for Girls. 1557 A.D.Stoughton Holborn, I. B. (Ian Bernard)
History
The Child of the Moat: A Story for Girls. 1557 A.D.
Stoughton Holborn, I. B. (Ian Bernard)
Adventure stories; Girls -- Juvenile fiction; Great Britain -- History -- Mary I, 1553-1558 -- Juvenile fiction
“You will be getting to know this moat,” said Audry, as Ian pulled
Aline, all dripping, up the bank. “This is your third adventure in the
moat since you came.”
She then went up and changed her clothes and joined the others in the
solar. There she found that Father Laurence had just arrived. He was
looking worn and worried, but a smile lit up his face as Aline came in.
The old man’s hand trembled as he laid it on her head. “You are growing
tall, my child; we shall soon see you a woman. I have just arrived with
some strange and horrible news, which I have been telling my Lord of
Ochil. You remember old ‘Moll o’ the graves,’ Aline.”
“Yes, Father.”
“She’s dead, my child; I saw her a few minutes ago on my way up. She
was lying at the foot of the Crags.”
Aline shuddered.
“We cannot leave the poor creature there,” he continued; “can you let
me have a couple of men, Master Richard, and would you mind her lying
here for the night? I will arrange for the funeral to-morrow.”
“Certainly,” said Master Mowbray, and he arose and accompanied Father
Laurence.
Twenty minutes later Aline and Ian were crossing the courtyard and
saw the bearers carrying the body on a hurdle into the room below the
granary. Ian at once drew Aline away in another direction, that she
should not see the horrible sight. He had caught one glimpse of the
face, and it was enough. It was the same as he had seen in his awful
vision in the fire,--the terrible grin,--the blood trickling through
the teeth. “Come away, little one, let us go elsewhere,” he said.
After all was quiet again, Thomas Carluke walked stealthily across the
quadrangle and entered the room where the body lay. A sheet had been
placed over it, but he drew it aside. The grin on the face seemed to
mock him. “Aha!” he said, “you fooled me twice, you old wretch, but
you will never do it again. You need not laugh at me like that. I have
cleared my score with you now. Did you not tell me that you would get
rid of the child?--and they got her out of the moat. Did you not tell
me she would be burnt?--and now Queen Mary is dead and there are no
more burnings. You miserable worm, what was the good of your hate? You
were no better than Andrew, no better than Father Ambrose. Pah! You
defied me just now on the Crags, did you? Well, here you are; and I
would do it again. Oh, it was so easy,--one little push. Ha, you still
mock; no, you cannot hurt me,--no, no,” he repeated apprehensively.
“You are dead, you cannot come back. I will not believe it. The devil
has your soul. But I must go, must go.”
He drew the sheet over the body again and went out. “Fool,” he said to
himself, “what am I afraid of? Fool, I say.”
Meanwhile Aline was walking with Audry through the garden.
“I am glad the horrible old thing is gone,” said Audry. “Are not you?”
“It seems too dreadful to say so,” Aline answered, “but I cannot
pretend that I am sorry. She always seemed to me a sort of evil
influence, a spirit of discord and hate.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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