FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159  
160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179   180   181   182   183   184   >>   >|  
from without, saluting as the massive gates creaked upon their hinges and protesting that further haste had been impossible. "Let every traitor crave mercy!" the Admiral thundered as he crossed the drawbridge with his cavalcade: "and on your knees crave pardon of your outraged Queen as we descend." "Signori!"--to the Knights of the Golden Spurs--"await us here--none less loyal may stand on guard." * * * * * To-day the entire armament of the fortress was less than of wont; for Rizzo and Tripoli, secure in their victory and confident that there would be no uprising since none had yet been attempted, had not hesitated to take a considerable following with them to secure the surrender of the other citadels of Cyprus "_by order of the Queen_." For was not Rizzo the happy holder of many pretty bits of parchment signed by the hand of "Caterina Regina" herself and attested by the royal signet of Cyprus--which to disobey was treason? It would be a pretty farce to insist upon the potency of that trembling signature wrested from the captive Queen when she had worn no semblance of power--a farce to which the Neapolitan schemer was fully equal. None but a man who knew the famous stronghold of Famagosta so intimately as did the Admiral of Cyprus could thus quickly have made sure that the surrender was complete and that no secret reserves of men and arms were kept back for further intrigues. To swear in those who would stand for Cyprus--to banish the mercenaries of Naples and all who were in sympathy with them to the dungeons below--to make sure of the color of the guards at port and passage--was not so much longer in the doing than in the telling. And yet, to the young Queen and Margherita the moments had seemed hours: they stood close together; straining every faculty to interpret the meaning of the commotion below, within the fortress, alternating between hope and fear as, at intervals, the cries of the people reached them from the piazza, indistinct and broken by the thickness of the walls; now and again a fierce imprecation rising above the tumult--yet surely there were tones of loyalty--voices calling for "Caterina Regina!" Caterina's strength was well-nigh spent--she had suffered so much; she caught the hand of Margherita in agitation as the tramp of footsteps echoed through the corridor nearing the door of her chamber, and Margherita laid her other hand on Caterina's with an almost
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159  
160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179   180   181   182   183   184   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
Caterina
 

Cyprus

 

Margherita

 

Admiral

 

secure

 
surrender
 
fortress
 

Regina

 
pretty
 

moments


intrigues

 

banish

 
mercenaries
 

secret

 
complete
 

reserves

 
Naples
 
longer
 

passage

 

telling


guards

 

sympathy

 

dungeons

 

straining

 

suffered

 

caught

 

strength

 

calling

 

surely

 

loyalty


voices

 
agitation
 

chamber

 

nearing

 

footsteps

 
echoed
 

corridor

 
tumult
 

intervals

 
alternating

interpret
 

meaning

 
commotion
 
people
 

reached

 

fierce

 
imprecation
 

rising

 
piazza
 

indistinct