I have told you that Marshal Ney himself had come in at the head of the rearguard, and to him we carried the paper immediately.
Be sure the importance of it was not lost upon him, and he heard us with an amazement akin to our own.
Naturally, such a man would lose no time in such an emergency, and, entering the post-house but to write a dispatch, he handed it to Leon, and commanded him to press on at all hazards and overtake the Emperor at Bobr.
"The fate of the army depends upon your diligence," said he. "Lose no time, sir, and I will see that you are well rewarded."
To this he added the order that an escort of a squadron of Prince Eugene"s own cavalry should accompany us, and with this we set out immediately upon the high road to the river.
It was now about midnight, intensely cold, but very clear and bright, and the detestable north wind but a gentle breeze. The road itself no longer traversed the terrible plains, but wound in and out of a low range of hills, which protected us a little from the rigours of the night. Unhappily, our escort was already fatigued with marching, and we had not ridden a league when it became apparent that they would hinder rather than help us. So much Leon indicated to their captain, and, bidding him return to the prince, he stated our resolution of travelling henceforth alone. "Two may go," says he, "where a hundred cannot. If this news does not reach the Emperor before daybreak the army is lost. It is our only chance, captain, as you must see for yourself. Leave it to me and the major here, and we will do all that can be done."
The captain agreed, admitting that the horses of his squadron could go no farther, and that the men were entirely unable to support the fatigues of such a venture. We left them accordingly, and pushed on henceforth alone. It was a relief to discover a road where a man could pa.s.s without stepping over the dead bodies of his comrades, and for a full hour we rode with none of those dreadful emblems of tragedy to which we had become so accustomed. In the end we entered a little defile which stood upon the brink of the forest. The high road became narrower, and was often wholly obliterated by the snow. I perceived that we were lost, and, drawing rein, I compelled my nephew to realise the extent of our misfortune.
"There are no dead here," said I. "If the army had pa.s.sed by this road, you know what we should have witnessed. The stars seem to tell me that we are too far to the north; there is nothing for it but to return as we came."
He cursed and swore at this, for he was as impetuous as every zealous soldier should be.
"If day finds the Emperor at Bobr," said he, "all is lost. We should have taken a guide in the village; that is the folly of it, mon oncle.
We have acted like children, and deserve what we get. Had we listened to Valerie----"
"Ah," said I, "always the women! Well, what did she say?"
"That she would conduct us to Bobr herself. I would have named it to the marshal, but you know what he thinks of women. There is nothing for it, as you say, but to return, and G.o.d keep us from a court-martial when we get there."
We turned about, and began to ride up the defile. A light shone through the trees almost at the head of it, and we perceived what we had overlooked on our western journey--a house standing in a clearing and lighting a welcome patch in that lonely forest. The idea came to me that these people might set us on the road, and, without waiting to ask my nephew"s opinion, I turned aside and knocked upon the door. It was opened immediately by as handsome a young Jew as I have ever seen.
Alas! he could not understand a word I addressed to him, but, drawing back as one in great fear, he called to someone inside; and presently there appeared a young woman as good-looking, but very much less afraid of the soldiers.
To my astonishment, a greeting in my own tongue was responded to immediately by this intelligent girl.
"Come in, messieurs," said she. "We do not fear your countrymen; we know that the French are our friends."
I hallooed to Leon to come down to the place, and then entered the cottage. A bright lamp burned upon the table, and food was set out there. When I remembered that it must have been nearly one o"clock of the morning, the fact seemed not a little suspicious; but a thought immediately came to me, and I turned to the girl and questioned her.
"Why are you awake at this time of night?" said I.
She flinched at that, and could not answer me; but I told her immediately.
"Your husband has been out to rob the soldiers who have perished," said I. "Come, be frank with me, and you shall not be punished. Has he not just come home and brought you some pretty things? Do not be afraid to tell me, and I will see that you do not suffer."
She admitted it at length. Her excuses were familiar and difficult to deal with. The men who had been robbed were dead, and their friends had deserted them. Of what use was money to them? The Cossacks took everything, she said; why did we begrudge them such trifles?
To which I responded very sternly that they had rendered themselves liable to the penalty of death, and would be pardoned upon one condition only.
"Doubtless you know the way to Bobr, young man," said I.
He did not deny it.
"Then you will conduct us there immediately. Come, where is your horse? You will have need of him."
He swore that he had no horse, and really I believe this was true. The girl"s fears had now become distressing to behold, and it was evident that she had her doubts of our honesty.
"Isidore is a very bad guide," she exclaimed, looking at us with searching eyes. "You would do much better to take me. I know the road to Bobr. I have walked there many times."
"Then," said I, "if you have walked there, we are not far from our destination. I will make you a proposition, my dear. It is that you both come. Nothing will happen to your house for an hour or two, and you can go back to-morrow."
The suggestion appeased her, but the man still seemed afraid.
"How shall I protect her from your countrymen?" said he. "Every road is full of soldiers nowadays. You know what that means, Excellency."
He spoke in Russian, but I gathered his meaning none the less.
Precious moments were being lost in this argument, and I would hear no more of it.
"By G.o.d!" said I, drawing a pistol from my belt. "If you do not start immediately I will blow your brains out."
The threat was quite sufficient. Methodically the woman caught up a heavy woollen cloak and addressed a few words to her husband in a whisper. A moment later she was haggling with me about terms, for such is the habit of these people.
"You will pay us for our trouble," she protested. "It is a long way to Bobr, messieurs, and we are very poor."
"I will give you a hundred francs if you bring me to the Emperor at daybreak," said I. And, refusing further parley, I went out to the bridle track immediately, and left them to decide. Not a little to my surprise, they followed me without protest, and we all set out again, the woman on Leon"s saddle, the young Jew at my horse"s head.
I think it was a little warmer by this time; but this may have been due to the wooded nature of the country through which we now rode. A stranger would not have found his way in a l.u.s.tre of years; so narrow was the path, so dense the trees, that we might have entered an enchanted land full of hobgoblins and far beyond the confines of the civilised world. It was difficult to remember that the Grand Army could not have been ten leagues from us, and were marching and dying this night, as upon so many weary nights since we had left Moscow. For all that, we made good headway, and were apparently about to regain the open country, when the Jew said something to his young wife, and she translated it for our benefit.
"We are coming to a very dangerous place," said she. "Your Excellencies must be prepared. There are robbers here who are a menace to all strangers. We ourselves pay them tribute--a large sum, much more than we can afford. But that concerns ourselves, and they will rob you if they can. Please, therefore, be very careful, and do not speak as you go."
I looked at Leon, and it was evident that the same thought was in both our minds. These brigands would very likely be the kinsmen of this engaging couple, and possibly we had been led to their lair for no other purpose than that of robbery. So I took my pistol from my holster again, and, showing it to the young Jew, I warned him.
"Robbers or no robbers," said I, "you will be a dead man the moment you let go of my bridle rein."
He shook his head, and professed not to understand me. It was clear, however, that he had made a pretty shrewd guess at my meaning, and he pressed on so quickly that I began to doubt my previous view of his honesty.
Was it possible that he was really afraid of this ghostly place? Well, I could understand as much. The fables of Hades never painted a gloomier abyss or a nether pit so awe-inspiring.
Sheer cliffs of sandy rock rose up to a great height on every hand.
There was but a hand"s breadth of sky to be seen above us; while below, far down in a crevice, there glistened the ice of a frozen rivulet.
The path itself would have served for a nimble goat, but was treacherous enough for a horse. We all dismounted, and for a full hour went as mountaineers upon a precipice. Then we came to a sudden halt at the young man"s bidding, and listening, we heard a piercing scream echoing and re-echoing in that frightful abyss.
"Good G.o.d!" cried Leon; "they are butchering a Frenchman. A man has died by the knife. I know that sound; I have heard it too often."
The young Jew began to tremble like an aspen at this, and his wife vainly tried to comfort him. Turning to us, she whispered a reminder of her prophecy concerning the dangers of the journey.
"It is the brigand Orlof," she said. "You see what has befallen us.
We must return immediately."
"Oh, come," said I; "such is not the habit of our countrymen. Who is this precious Orlof, and how many friends has he?"
She responded that it was impossible to say. There might be two or three, there might be twenty. To which I answered that we would take our chance, and pushing the young Jew on before me, I covered him with my pistol.
It was then that I discovered that madame had a great Russian pistol of her own, and was already looking to its priming. So the brigands were not her fathers and mothers after all.