e going to bid Monico good morning," Demetrio said gravely,
dismounting and tossing his bridle to one of his men. "We're going to
have breakfast with Don Monico, who's a particular friend of mine ...."

The general's staff smiled ... a sinister, malign smile....

Making their spurs ring against the pavement, they walked toward a
large pretentious house, obviously that of a cacique.

"It's closed airtight," Anastasio Montanez said, pushing the door with
all his might.

"That's all right. I'll open it," Pancracio answered, lowering his
rifle and pointing it at the lock.

"No, no," Demetrio said, "knock first."

Three blows with the butt of the rifle. Three more. No answer.
Pancracio disobeys orders. He fires, smashing the lock. The door opens.
Behind, a confusion of skirts and children's bare legs rushing to and
fro, pell-mell.

"I want wine. Hey, there: wine!" Demetrio cries in an imperious voice,
pounding heavily on a table.

"Sit down, boys."

A lady peeps out, another, a third; from among black skirts, the heads
of frightened children. One of the women, trembling, walks toward a
cupboard and, taking out some glasses and a bottle, serves wine.

"What arms have you?" Demetrio demands harshly.

"Arms, arms...?" the lady answers, a taste of ashes on her tongue.
"What arms do you expect us to have! We are respectable, lonely old
ladies!"

"Lonely, eh! Where's Senor Monico?"

"Oh, he's not here, gentlemen, I assure you! We merely rent the house
from him, you see. We only know him by name!"

Demetrio orders his men to search the house.

"No, please don't. We'll bring you whatever we have ourselves, but
please for God's sake, don't do anything cruel. We're spinsters, lone
women ... perfectly respectable...."

"Spinsters, hell! What about these kids here?" Pancracio interrupts
brutally. "Did they spring from the earth?"

The women disappear hurriedly, to return with an old shotgun, covered
with dust and cobwebs, and a pistol with rusty broken springs.

Demetrio smiles.

"All right, then, let's see the money."

"Money? Money? But what money do you think a couple of spinsters have?
Spinsters alone in the world....?"

They glance up in supplication at the nearest soldier; but they are
seized with horror. For they have just seen the Roman soldier who
crucified Our Lord in the Via Crucis of the parish! They have seen
Pancracio!

Demetrio repeats his order to search.

Once again the women disappear t