none!'" Pushing back his chair, he glanced at sun out of
window. "It is over. I incline to think that it was at best but an empty
vision. You are dismissed, Master Christopherus!"

The Genoese, bowing, stepped backward from the table. In his face and
carriage was nothing broken. He kept color. The Queen's glance went
after him, "What will you do now, Master Christopherus?"

He answered, "My lady, your Highness, I shall take horse to-morrow for
France."

The King said, "France?--King Charles buys ever low, not high!"

The Sovereigns and the great churchmen and the less great went away
together. After them flowed the high attendance. All went, Don Enrique
among the last. Following him, I turned head, for I wished to observe
again two persons, the painter Manuel Rodriguez and the Admiral of the
Ocean-Sea. The former painted on. The latter walked forth quite alone,
coming behind the grinning pages.

In the court below I saw him again. The archway to street sent toward us
a deep wedge of shadow. He had a cloak which he wrapped around him and
a large round hat which he drew low over his gray-blue eyes. With a firm
step he crossed to the archway where the purple shadow took him.

Juan Lepe must turn to his own part which now must be decided. I walked
behind Don Enrique de Cerda through Santa Fe. With him kept Don Miguel
de Silva, who loved Don Enrique's sister and would still talk of
_devoir_ and of plans, now that the war was ended. When the house was
reached he would enter with us and still adhere to Don Enrique. But at
the stair foot the latter spoke to the squire. "Find me in an hour, Juan
Lepe. I have something to say to thee!" His tone carried, "Do you think
the place there makes any difference? No, by the god of friends!"

I let him go thinking that I would come to him presently. But I, too,
had to act under the god of friends. In Diego Lopez's room I found
quill and ink and paper, and there I wrote a letter to Don Enrique, and
finding Diego gave it to him to be given in two hours into Don Enrique's
hand. Then Juan Lepe the squire changed in his own room, narrow and bare
as a cell, to the clothing of Juan Lepe the sailor.

CHAPTER VII

DUSK was drawing down as I stole with little trouble out of the house
into the street and thence into the maze of Santa Fe. That night I slept
with minstrels and jugglers, and at sunrise slipped out of Cordova gate
with muleteers. They were for Cordova and I meant to go to Ma