ead of in his
cell; but with a prudence hardly to be expected from him, and which the
horror he had of a prolongation of his captivity, perhaps alone induced
him to exercise, he would not risk crossing the strip of open land
intervening between him and the wood; judging, not without reason, that
it might be overlooked by the convent windows.

For some time Paco remained seated upon his pile of casks, feasting his
eyes with the sunshine, to which they had so long been strangers; his
ear on the watch, his fingers mechanically plucking and twisting the
blades of grass that grew in through the window. He was arranging in his
mind what route he should take, and considering where he was most likely
to find Count Villabuena, when he was surprised by the sound of words,
proceeding apparently from a considerable distance above his head, but
some of which nevertheless reached his quick and practised ear. Of these
the one most distinctly spoken was the name of Jaime, and in the voice
that spoke it, Paco was convinced that he recognised that of Count
Villabuena's daughter. A few moments elapsed, something else was said,
what, he was unable to make out, and then, to his no small alarm, his
old acquaintance and recent betrayer, Jaime the esquilador, stood within
arm's length of his window. He instinctively drew back; the gipsy was so
near, that only the growth of weeds before mentioned interposed between
him and the muleteer. But Paco soon saw that his proximity was
unsuspected by Jaime, who had commenced the dialogue with Rita already
recorded. Paco at once comprehended the situation; and emboldened by the
knowledge that he, and even the aperture of the window, was concealed
from sight by the grass and bushes, he again put his head as far forward
as was prudent, and attentively listened. Not a word spoken by the
esquilador escaped him, but he could scarcely hear any thing of what
Rita said; for the distance between her and Jaime being diminished, she
spoke in a very low tone. He made out, however, that she was
endeavouring to bribe the gipsy to take a letter--to whom, he did not
hear--and a scheme occurred to him, the execution of which he only
deferred till he should see the missive in the possession of Jaime, on
whose every gesture and movement he kept a vigilant watch. At the same
instant that the letter was deposited in the gipsy's pocket, Paco thrust
both his hands through the grass, seized the naked ankles of the
esquilador in