rted in under
the cliff, there crouching down--so close to Jose that the latter could
have almost touched him with the tips of his fingers. He had no desire
to do so, no thought of it; but the very opposite. His wish was to
avoid an encounter; and good reason for it, as he was soon after made
aware. Fortunately for him, the hunchback neither saw nor had a
suspicion of his proximity. With face turned to the road, he was
altogether occupied with the party approaching.

The Hussars turned out--an escort of some eight or ten files, with two
officers at its head; these riding side by side, and a little in
advance. They were chatting gaily and rather vociferously; the voice of
him who spoke loudest being well-known to Jose. For Colonel Santander,
whether welcome or not, was a frequent visitor at the _casa de campo_ of
Don Ignacio Valverde. And the dwarf now remembered it too, as he did so
abandoning all attempt at concealment, and gliding out into the middle
of the road.

"_Carajo_!" simultaneously shouted the two officers, as their horses
reared up, snorting at the strange shape so suddenly presented before
them. "What the _Demonio_ is it, if not Satan himself?" added
Santander.

"No, _Senor Coronet_," returned Zorillo. "Not the devil; only a poor
creature whom God has cursed by making him in a shape that isn't
altogether fashionable. But just for that reason I trust being recalled
to your Excellency's remembrance--am I not?"

"Ah! You were in the Acordada?"

"_Si, Senor Coronet_."

"And 'twas you I saw coupled to the Tejano?"

"The same, Senor. In that prosecuted by a like ill, no doubt, the devil
all the time directing it."

"But where have you been since, sirrah?"

"Ah! _Excellenza_! that's just it; the very thing I want to tell you.
I was on my way to the city in hopes of obtaining an interview with you.
What a bit of fortune you passing here: 'twill save me a journey I was
ill able to make; for I'm quite worn out, and weak, from being starved
up there in the mountains."

"Oh! you've been up there?"

"Yes, Senor Coronel, in hiding with the others. But not like them
voluntarily. They took me along with them, whether I would or no, and
have kept me ever since--till this night, when an opportunity offered
for giving them the slip. It isn't all of four hours since I parted
company with them. But if your Excellency wishes to hear the whole
story, perhaps you'd like it better in private. If I m