“He was silent for a few moments; then suddenly starting from the ground—“You know that she is confined there,” said he with a furious look, “and knowing that, you know enough to destroy me! Ask me no more questions; I will answer none!”—
“He threw himself sullenly upon the heap of ruins, and maintained an obstinate silence. Unwilling to own that I knew no more than his name, I first endeavoured to terrify him into a disclosure of this mystery; and finding my threats produce no effect, I had recourse to persuasion, painting in as strong colours as possible the cruelty of suffering the unfortunate to remain longer in her prison, and exhorting him to atone in some degree for his faults towards his captive, by being himself the instrument to effect her release. In the mean while my companions had fallen to work with their spades and mattocks; but large pieces of stone frequently fell into the dungeon below; and the cries of the sufferer, who dreaded being crushed beneath their weight, convinced them, how dangerous was this mode of procuring her deliverance, and finally compelled them to desist from the attempt.
“What was now to be done? While we agitated this question, Luprian stood with his arms folded, silent and thoughtful, as if He too had been resolving some difficult point; at length he threw himself on his knees before us; and on condition that his life and liberty should be secured to him, he made a proposal, which he swore to fulfil conscientiously.
—“No one but myself,” said he, “can enable you to set that captive free, and it is in my power to show you such means as are most sure and speedy. You see how rotten is this vault, and you may judge from the faint murmur of her complaints, how deep her dungeon is sunk into the ground. It will at any rate be long, ere you can force your way to her; and from her extreme weakness it is unlikely, that she should live till your arrival, even should she escape the imminent danger of having her brains dashed out by some fragment of the crumbling roof. But only speak one word to assure me of life and forgiveness, and I will immediately furnish you with explanations, which (should you refuse my offer) this dagger shall enable me to take with me to the grave.”—
“The naked steel, which Luprian now pointed towards his bosom, inspired us with no alarm. It would have been easy to wrest the weapon from his grasp; but our impatience to assist the unfortunate captive compelled us to give the required promise. Her complaints had now again ceased to be audible; and we felt, that not a moment was to be lost, if we meant to find her still in existence.
“As soon as we had solemnly engaged not to attempt either his life or freedom, Luprian resigned his dagger to one of the Monks, and informed us, that in order to accomplish our object it would be necessary to quit the vault, and seek a different entrance to the lady’s dungeon, which was well known to him. Accordingly we followed him for some time, till we arrived at a remote part of the Convent ruins.
—“Here,” said he, stopping before a ruined wall, from which he removed a few loose stones, and showed us a narrow flight of stairs; “here you must descend, and these steps will conduct you to the place, of which you are in search. Now then I have performed my promise, and require the performance of yours: permit me to retire.”—
“I hastily seized a torch from one of the Monks, and was hastening down the staircase, without giving myself a moment’s reflection: but the more prudent Abbot detained me, gave the torch to Luprian, and commanded him to finish the work which he had begun, before he claimed the reward of his services.
“Nothing was left for him but to obey. He guided us down about fifty steps, and after reaching the foot of the stairs we had a subterraneous passage to traverse of the same length with that, which had led us from the grating to the ruined wall. It was terminated by an iron door strongly fastened on the outside, and which had we not detained Luprian, we should have found no little difficulty, and lost no little time, in opening. As I made this observation, I cast upon him an accusing glance; but the door unclosing left me no time to express in words my indignation at this proof of his intended treachery. We rushed eagerly into the dungeon, and found it to be a large vaulted cell, of which darkness had taken such complete possession, that the beams of our torches were insufficient to dissipate the gloom, and could only shed a faint glimmering around us. Its only recommendations were its loftiness and space. By holding our lights on high, we could discern (but with difficulty) the iron grating inserted in the roof, through which the complaints of the prisoner had so seasonably reached me. Exactly beneath it stood a loaf and a flask of wine, which Luprian had just let down into the dungeon; and in a corner of it stretched on a miserable pallet the object of our search lay fainting, as indeed we had suspected from her silence. With the assistance of one of the younger Monks I raised her from the ground, and bore her to the upper air, which we considered as the most likely means of bringing her to herself.
“This hope however proved vain. Animation was lost too completely to be so easily recalled. Above an hour had elapsed since our conveying her to the Abbot’s dwelling (where no means were neglected that could restore animation) before we had the least reason to flatter ourselves with hopes of her recovery. At length with inexpressible delight we saw her half unclose her eyes; but she instantly shut them again on account of the pain caused in them by the light, to which they were now quite unaccustomed.