meant to speak, "that the fig is poisoned."

"And I tell you that you lie, you heathen savage. See here! Either you
eat that fig or I do, so that we may know who speaks the truth. If you
won't, I will. Now obey, or, by Christ! to-morrow you shall be shorter
by a head."

"The Augustus is pleased to threaten, which is unnecessary," I remarked.
"If I eat the fig, will the Augustus swear to leave the rest of them
uneaten?"

"Aye," he answered with a hiccough, "for then I shall know the truth,
and for the truth I live, though," he added, "I haven't found it yet."

"And if I do not eat it, will the Augustus do so?"

"By the Holy Blood, yes. I'll eat a dozen of them. Am I one to be
hectored by a woman and a barbarian? Eat, or I eat."

"Good, Sire. It is better that a barbarian should die than that the
world should lose its glorious Emperor. I eat, and when you are as I
soon shall be, as will happen even to an emperor, may my blood lie heavy
on your soul, the blood which I give to save your life."

Then I lifted the fig to my lips.

Before ever it touched them, with a motion swift as that of a panther
springing on its prey, Irene had leapt from her couch and dashed the
fruit from my hand. She turned upon her son.

"What kind of a thing are you," she asked, "who would suffer a brave man
to poison himself that he may save your worthless life? Oh! God, what
have I done that I should have given birth to such a hound? Whoever
poisoned them, these fruits are poisoned, as has been proved and can be
proved again, yes, and shall be. I tell you that if Olaf had tasted one
of them by now he would have been dead or dying."

Constantine drank another cup of wine, which, oddly enough, seemed to
sober him for the moment.

"I find all this strange," he said heavily. "You, my mother, would
have suffered me to eat the fig which you declare is poisoned; a matter
whereof you may know something. But when the General Olaf offers to eat
it in my place, with your own royal hand you dash it from his lips, as
he dashed it from mine. And there is another thing which is still more
strange. This Olaf, who also says the figs are poisoned, offered to
eat one of them if I promised I would not do so, which means, if he
is right, that he offered to give his life for mine. Yet I have done
nothing for him except call him hard names; and as he is your servant
he has nothing to look for from me if I should win the fight with you at
last. Now I have hea