Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-04-03
CHAPTER XVI.
The Traitor.

disappointed rage from Ellerey. With d.
plomacy and the fine points of strategy Ste
fan tie soldier had little to do. Hts busi-
ness was fighting. It was his livelihood.
and some day, near or far in the future as
fate decreed it would be his death. His
respect for his fellows was measured by
their power Of withstandins him. and the
man he had the greatest affection for. per-
haps. was soldier. now inca citateu, who
had once in q melee succeeded in knocking
him from his saddle At the same time ne
believed in his own astuteness, not without
some reason be 1t said, and In the back or
his mind there was always a certain admi-
ration for the man who could get the better
Of him. 1t Is more than possible that II ne
ever married he would thoroughly respect
his wife on account Of her cleverness IN
having hoodwinked him into marrying her.
But the burst of anger did not come. Ell
lereys eyes were fixed on the point IN the
pass round which the soldiers had disap-
peared, and for some minutes he did not
speak.
What is done must remain as it Is" he
said at last. I'VE have only ourselves to
consider now. We must watch two and
two one on the plateau. one at the path
Anton and you. Stefan: Grigosie and /. It's
short rations for US and careful use OF car
trdges. We must understand how our en-
envy is going to conduct this siege before
we calculate our chances What ammuni-
ton have we?"
1t was little enough tnaI the TOUT VI tucHu
could display. II every cartridge accounted
for a man, small damage would be done to
their foes.
Il flung a belt of cartridges in corner Of
the tower before we left" said Grigosie.
They all turned to look at him.
Did you fling some food into corner,
too?' asked Stefan.
mo, but 1 marked that birds used the
plateau In the early morning Grisosie an
They'll be coming in larger numbers
presently. and. maybe get good picking
of the four of u.s." said Stefan You
haven't happened upon fountain of wine,
have your?
THAT, too, is supplied. Stefan; you can
hear 1t leaping down the mountainside,
and see 1t, too" and the boy pointed to
corner of the plateau which was within
reach of the narrow stream which. from the
heights. fell with many cascade into the
pass beneath.
stefan looked at him for a moment, and
then said in disgust: water and BIRDS;
fairies fodder
ut might be worse" said Anton.
Wait day or two, comrade. and you'll
be crying a different tale" said Stefan. AL
though for that matter. the food will
DOUBTLESS last our time Had we, in our
small circle here. half dozen taverns illed
from cellar floor to garrett ceiling. those fei-
lows yonder would give US little chance of
visiting them. Keep watch here, Anton;
I'll go to the gate
We'll rest. Grigosie." said Ellerey.
The boy turned and entered the tower
but Ellerey did not follow him at once. He
paced in and out the ruined walls. his hands
clasped behind him, deep in thought and
troubled
Who had deceived him? 1t could only be
the queen, or the man who had brought him
the token. or perhaps De Froilette. In
deed they might all be in a conspiracy to
deceive him. Yet why should the queen
desire to deliver the token of Princess Ma
rita $ house to the brigands? How could 1t
serve her ends? De Frolette's position and
political aims were less clear. Ellerey had
never believed him heart whole In his de-
votion to her majesty: yet surely he would
have taken the precaution to find out how
such q token would be received before send
ing 1t. He was not the man to risk the
work Of years without some real hope of
success. Then Ellerey's thoughts turned to
the woman who had craved his help in the
Altstrasse, the manner in which he had
been searched for the token, the masked
woman who had come to look upon him.
and the warning she had given him. Baron
Petrescu, too, had probably forced the duel
upon him because of the token, believing
that 1t had been delivered to him that night
by the queen. At his interview with her
majesty the token which had been decided
upon was the bracelet Of medailions: 1t was
hardly likely that it would be suddenly
changed. Somehow the bracelet had been
filched from the sealed box. and the golden
cross placed there instead. Ellerey decided
that the power to effect this change lay
only with the man who had brought him
the token, and On this man he fixed the
blame.
Whoever was responsible for it, the
scheme had failed miserably, and 1t was
difficult to see how success could ever have
been hoped for. On the other hand it could
hardly be supposed that all those who fol-
lowed the fortunes of the golden cross were
fools acting upon sudden impulse, counting
disaster. They must have had some reason
for believing that the token would receive
some consideration from the brigands and
wi had gathered their standard.
Possibly they had themselves been deceived,
even as they had attempted to deceive.
Ellerey could not doubt that Princess
Martha had a considerable following In
Sturatzberg that the seeds of the rebellion
were widely scattered. The soldiers now
riding toward the capital would spread the
news of failure. and the rebellion in self
defense might be forced to break into open
conflict at once. Even then would Marit-
zas followers give a thought to the rem
nant of the band who had carried the mes
sage? If Countess Mavrodin had voice
in their councils surely she must have
they might The chance of rescue was
slender one. but hope did exist
Strange to say, anger at the trick which
had been played upon him did not assert
itself in any great degree In spite OF the
fact that all hope Of honor and advance
ment was now at an end Vasilicis attf-
tude had doubtless something to do with
Ellerey.s state of mind. personal antag-
onism rising above ambition; but this would
not have been the case probably had Ell
lerey been forced against his will into any
other service than that of Princess Ma
ritza There was a charm for him in her
name, the memory of her had dwelt with
him and lent halo of romance to his pres
ent position. He saw her again with her
hair streaming in the breeze, and felt
again the subtle strength and vigor that
were in her. Had he not thought then that
it would be good to fight in her cause?
Why should he rage at the circumstances
which had forced him into it?
When he entered the tower Grigosie was
asleep and he lay down to snatch what
rest he could before relieving Anton and
Stefan.
When they went on duty. Grigosie watch
ed by the PATH Ellerey on the plateau.
'They will wait for Vasilici." Stefan said
when he reported that all had been quiet
SO far.
Ellerey paced up and down. pausing at
short intervals to listen. Not a sound
broke the deep silence The great world
seemed to lie still and motionless under the
glow of the moonlit night and the pale
Rlimmer of the stars. 1t was q time to
dream Of life and realized ambition. not to
ponder ON lurking death and failure. He
walked presently to the head of the zigzag
path.
your castle has proved a refuge after
ALL Grigosie. How came You to be pro-