This answer forbade his further questioning; offended, possibly, his
sense of that confidence which is due comrade to comrade, but she
became immediately so propitiative and sweetly dependent--the
antithesis to that self-reliance her response implied--he thought no
more of it, but remained content with her reticence. Half-shyly, she
looked at him beneath her dark lashes, as if to read how deeply he was
annoyed, and, seeing his face clear, laughed lightly.

"What are you laughing at, mistress?" he said.

"If I knew I could tell," she replied.

Toward sundown on the fourth day they came to a lonely inn, set in a
clearing on the verge of a forest. They had ridden late in the
moonlight the night before, and all that morning and afternoon almost
without resting, and the first sight of the solitary hostelry was not
unwelcome to the weary fugitives. A second inspection of the place,
however, awakened misgivings. The building seemed the better adapted
for a fortress than a tavern, being heavily constructed with massive
doors and blinds, and loopholes above. A brightly painted sign, The
Rooks' Haunt, waved cheerily, it is true, above the door, as though to
disarm suspicion, but the isolated situation of the inn, and the
depressing sense of the surrounding wilderness, might well cause the
wayfarer to hesitate whether to tarry there or continue his journey.

A glance at the pale face and unnaturally bright eyes of the girl
brought the jester, however, to a quick decision. Springing from his
horse, he held out his hand to assist her, but, overcome by weakness,
or fatigue, she would have fallen had he not sustained her. Quickly
she recovered, and with a faint flush mantling her white cheek,
withdrew from his grasp, while at the same time the landlord of the
tavern came forward to welcome his guests.

In appearance mine host was round and jovial; his bulk bespoke hearty
living; his rosy face reflected good cheer; his stentorian voice,
free-and-easy hospitality. His eyes constituted the only setback to
this general impression of friendliness and fellow-feeling; they were
small, twinkling, glassy.

"Good even to you, gentle folk," he said. "You tarry for the night, I
take it?"

"If you have suitable accommodations," answered the jester, reassured
by the man's aspect and manner.

"The Rooks' Haunt never yet turned away a weary traveler," answered the
landlord. "You come from the palace?"

"Yes," briefly, as a la