The force of Jack’s spring had been so great that he bore the big man to the floor. At the same time he cried to the Czar:
“Back inside, quick, your Majesty!”
But the lad need not have spoken; for at the sound of the first shot, others of the Czar’s personal retinue had seized their Emperor and borne him forcibly away. Then the crack of rifles filled the air.
Under the command of their officers, trapped though they were, the disloyal Russian troops turned to give battle to the loyal forces who surrounded them on all sides.
So terrific, however, were the volleys poured in on them from beyond, one after another, and so fast did they drop, that their resistance was but momentary. Yet during the time that it took them to lay down their arms and cry for quarter, fully a thousand of them were shot down.
Immediately thereafter, the commander of the loyal forces gave the command to advance, and the men came forward at the double, thrusting to right and left with their swords and long bayonets among the now unarmed men.
Jack, having choked Count Blowinski into unconsciousness, had paused a moment before going inside to watch the battle. Therefore, he was still on the palace steps when a squad of loyal troops burst through the disloyal forces and ascended the steps with a rush.
The officer in command saw Jack standing there almost alone, a revolver still in his hand, and pointing toward the lad with his sword he exclaimed:
“Seize him!”
Immediately rough hands were laid on Jack. In vain he struggled to free himself and protested his innocence of any wrong. The grasp of his captors only tightened. In spite of his struggles he was led down the steps and in among the heart of the Russian troops.