in my eyes, and I could see that he read it.  The flush died from his face.  His breath came in shorter and in thicker gasps.  Yet he fought on, even after the final thrust had come, and died still hacking and cursing, with foul cries upon his lips, and his blood clotting upon his orange beard.  I who speak to you have seen so many battles, that my old memory can scarce contain their names, and yet of all the terrible sights which these eyes have rested upon, there is none which I care to think of less than of that orange beard with the crimson stain in the centre, from which I had drawn my sword-point.

It was only afterwards that I had time to think of all this.  His monstrous body had hardly crashed down upon the floor before the woman in the corner sprang to her feet, clapping her hands together and screaming out in her delight.  For my part I was disgusted to see a woman take such delight in a deed of blood, and I gave no thought as to the terrible wrongs which must have befallen her before she could so far forget the gentleness of her sex.  It was on my tongue to tell her sharply to be silent, when a strange, choking smell took the breath from my nostrils, and a sudden, yellow glare brought out the figures upon the faded hangings.

‘Duroc, Duroc!’ I shouted, tugging at his shoulder.  ’The Castle is on fire!’

The boy lay senseless upon the ground, exhausted by his wounds.  I rushed out into the hall to see whence the danger came.  It was our explosion which had set alight to the dry frame-work of the door.  Inside the store-room some of the boxes were already blazing.  I glanced in, and as I did so my blood was turned to water by the sight of the powder barrels beyond, and of the loose heap upon the floor.  It might be seconds, it could not be more than minutes, before the flames would be at the edge of it.  These eyes will be closed in death, my friends, before they cease to see those crawling lines of fire and the black heap beyond.

How little I can remember what followed.  Vaguely I can recall how I rushed into the chamber of death, how I seized Duroc by one limp hand and dragged him down the hall, the woman keeping pace with me and pulling at the other arm.  Out of the gateway we rushed, and on down the snow-covered path until we were on the fringe of the fir forest.  It was at that moment that I heard a crash behind me, and, glancing round, saw a great spout of fire shoot up into the wintry sky.  An instant later there seemed to come a second crash, far louder than the first.  I saw the fir trees and the stars whirling round me, and I fell unconscious across the body of my comrade.

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