"They will not break. Good-night."
The King left the tent.
"I think I have seen that harp of plain black wood in some other hand. Where was it?" asked Zazo. "In Ravenna, was it not?"
Hilda nodded. "My friend Teja, my teacher on the harp and in the use of arms, bestowed it on me as a wedding gift. And his noble, faithful heart has not forgotten me. In my happiness he made no sign. But now--"
"Well?" asked Zazo.
"As soon as the first news of our defeat at Decimum reached Ravenna," said Gibamund, "brave Ostrogoths, the old instructor in the use of arms, Teja, and several others, wished to come to our assistance with a body of volunteers; for it was rumored that I had fallen. Probably the mistake arose through the death of Ammata. The Regent strictly forbade it. Then Teja sent to my widow, as he supposed, this magnificent dagger of dark metal."
"The workmanship is exquisite," said Zazo, drawing out the blade and examining it. "What a superb weapon!"
"And he forged it himself," cried Hilda, eagerly. "Look here; his housemark on the hilt."
"And on the blade a motto inscribed in runes," added Zazo, stepping under the lamp: "'The dead are free.' H'm, a stern consolation. But not too stern for Hilda. Keep this carefully."
"Yes," replied Hilda, quietly. "The dagger in my girdle, and the consolation in my thoughts."