The Romance of Golden Star ...Griffith, George Chetwynd
Science
The Romance of Golden Star ...
Griffith, George Chetwynd
Fantasy fiction
Although Hartness was a much taller and broader man than the Spaniard,
his long, loose overcoat fitted him well enough for the occasion, and
when he had put on his shako, and wrapped his scarf about his neck so as
to hide his fair beard, he was disguised enough to pass in the darkness
for one of the enemy. We now took the two soldiers who had been with the
officer and visited all the posts. We found four of the sentries who
could not return the password and were therefore enemies. These we
disarmed and bound instead of killing them, for I could see that what I
had done had pleased my friend but little, though he saw that in such a
desperate venture as ours it was necessary to use desperate measures.
When we had gone the rounds and made sure of all, we buried the two dead
men, and took our prisoners into one of the caves under the carved
stones. Then I posted my men so as to guard all the approaches from the
city to the Rodadero, and after that I went with Hartness to the hidden
hole by the Sayacusca, and showed him how the way to the Hall of Gold
was opened. I did this so that the secret might be in good and safe
hands if I should fall in battle, and so that he should be able to
properly protect the welfare of Ruth and Golden Star, and fulfil my
promises to himself and the professor.
When I had turned the stone and showed him the chain, I pulled it up and
supported it as I had done before, only this time I used the carbine
which had belonged to the sentry I had killed, and to the stock of this
I fastened a long rope which Tupac had hidden there by my orders. This
rope I stretched out along the ground, hiding it as well as I could, in
a straight line away from the Sayacusca. The end I led into the entrance
of one of the many passages or tunnels which ran under the carved
stones. By the time I had done this the water had all flowed away, and
Hartness said to me,--
'Are you going to leave the entrance to your treasure-house open like
that for His Excellency to walk into to-morrow?'
'Yes,' I said, 'but it is only half open. Unless the door below is open
too there is no way out or in save this and the channel through which
the waters flow, so that His Excellency will not find much down there.'
'I see,' he said, 'a trap, and not one that I should care to see a
friend of mine walk into. But you don't mean to drown them all like rats
in a hole, do you?'
'I cannot tell that yet,' I said. 'If we can take them alive we may do
so, but unless they yield to us they shall yield to the water. Now,
everything is ready, and we have only to wait. Come and sleep for a
little and I will keep watch, and then I will sleep and you shall watch.
It will not be daylight for six hours yet, and we can do nothing more
till then.'
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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