Another rifle explosion followed, which was succeeded by a loud, long shriek.
"An attack!" cried one of the men, with a deep curse. They listened still, yet did not move away from the place, for the duty to which they had been a.s.signed was still prominent in their minds. The priest had already risen to his feet, still smoking his pipe, as though in this new turn of affairs its a.s.sistance might be more than ever needed to enable him to preserve his presence of mind, and keep his soul serene in the midst of confusion.
And now they saw all around them the signs of agitation. Figures in swift motion flitted to and fro amidst the shade, and others darted past the smouldering fires. In the midst of this another shot sounded, and another, and still another. At the third there was a wild yell of rage and pain, followed by the shrill cry of a woman"s voice. The fact was evident that some one of the brigands had fallen, and the women were lamenting.
The confusion grew greater. Loud cries arose; calls of encouragement, of entreaty, of command, and of defiance. Over by the old house there was the uproar of rushing men, and in the midst of it a loud, stern voice of command. The voices and the rushing footsteps moved from the house to the woods. Then all was still for a time.
It was but for a short time, however. Then came shot after shot in rapid succession. The flashes could be seen among the trees. All around them there seemed to be a struggle going on. There was some unseen a.s.sailant striking terrific blows from the impenetrable shadow of the woods. The brigands were firing back, but they fired only into thick darkness. Shrieks and yells of pain arose from time to time, the direction of which showed that the brigands were suffering. Among the a.s.sailants there was neither voice nor cry. But, in spite of their losses and the disadvantage under which they labored, the brigands fought well, and resisted stubbornly. From time to time a loud, stern voice arose, whose commands resounded far and wide, and sustained the courage of the men and directed their movements.
The men who guarded the priest and Ethel were growing more and more excited every moment, and were impatient at their enforced inaction.
"They must be soldiers," said one.
"Of course," said another.
"They fight well."
"Ay; better than the last time."
"How did they learn to fight so well under cover?"
"They"ve improved. The last time we met them we shot them like sheep, and drove them back in five minutes."
"They"ve got a leader who understands fighting in the woods. He keeps them under cover."
"Who is he?"
"Diavolo! who knows? They get new captains every day."
"Was there not a famous American Indian--"
"True. I heard of him. An Indian warrior from the American forests.
Guiseppe saw him when he was at Rome."
"Bah!--you all saw him."
"Where?"
"On the road."
"We didn"t."
"You did. He was the Zouave who fled to the woods first."
"He?"
"Yes."
"Diavolo!"
These words were exchanged between them as they looked at the fighting. But suddenly there came rapid flashes and rolling volleys beyond the fires that lay before them, and the movement of the flashes showed that a rush had been made toward the lake. Wild yells arose, then fierce returning fires, and these showed that the brigands were being driven back.
The guards could endure this no longer.
"They are beating us," cried one of the men, with a curse. "We must go and fight."
"What shall we do with these prisoners?"
"Tie them and leave them."
"Have you a rope?"
"No. There is one by the grave."
"Let"s take the prisoners there and bind them."
This proposition was accepted; and, seizing the priest and Ethel, the four men hurried them back to the grave. The square hole lay there just beside them, with the earth by its side. Ethel tried to see into it, but was not near enough to do so. One of the men found the rope, and began in great haste to bind the arms of the priest behind him.
Another began to bind Ethel in the same way.
But now there came loud cries, and the rush of men near them. A loud, stern voice was encouraging the men.
"On! on!" he cried. "Follow me! We"ll drive them back!"
Saying this, a man hurried on, followed by a score of brigands.
It was Girasole.
He had been guarding the woods at this side when he had seen the rush that had been made farther up. He had seen his men driven in, and was now hurrying up to the place to retrieve the battle. As he was running on he came up to the party at the grave.
He stopped.
"What"s this?" he cried.
"The prisoners--we were securing them."
It was now lighter than it had been, and dawn was not far off. The features of Girasole were plainly distinguishable. They were convulsed with the most furious pa.s.sion, which was not caused so much by the rage of conflict as by the sight of the prisoners. He had suspected treachery on their part, and had spared them for a time only so as to see whether his suspicions were true or not. But now this sudden a.s.sault by night, conducted so skillfully, and by such a powerful force, pointed clearly to treachery, as he saw it, and the ones who to him seemed most prominent in guilt were the priest and Ethel.
His suspicions were quite reasonable under the circ.u.mstances. Here was a priest whom he regarded as his natural enemy. These brigands identified themselves with republicans and Garibaldians whenever it suited their purposes to do so, and consequently, as such, they were under the condemnation of the Pope; and any priest might think he was doing the Pope good service by betraying those who were his enemies.
As to this priest, every thing was against him. He lived close by; every step of the country was no doubt familiar to him; he had come to the camp under very suspicious circ.u.mstances, bringing with him a stranger in disguise. He had given plausible answers to the cross-questioning of Girasole; but those were empty words, which went for nothing in the presence of the living facts that now stood before him in the presence of the enemy.
These thoughts had all occurred to Girasole, and the sight of the two prisoners kindled his rage to madness. It was the deadliest purpose of vengeance that gleamed in his eyes as he looked upon them, and they knew it. He gave one glance, and then turned to his men.
"On! on!" he cried; "I will join you in an instant; and you," he said to the guards, "wait a moment."
The brigands rushed on with shouts to a.s.sist their comrades in the fight, while the other four waited.
All this time the fight had not ceased. The air was filled with the reports of rifle-shots, the shouts of men, the yells of the wounded.
The flashes seemed to be gradually drawing nearer, as though the a.s.sailants were still driving the brigands. But their progress was slow, for the fighting was carried on among the trees, and the brigands resisted stubbornly, retreating from cover to cover, and stopping every moment to make a fresh stand. But the a.s.sailants had gained much ground, and were already close by the borders of the lake, and advancing along toward the old stone house.