“I had forgotten that it was so hot,” she said apologetically.
“I think, madame, that it will be well to stand as near the window as possible,” said Cyril, with growing anxiety, “so as to be ready the moment that the old man comes back.”
He found an old packing-case for her to stand on, in order to keep her wounded feet from the floor, and they waited by the window in silence for what appeared to be hours. Still the old man did not return, and a terrible thought crept into Cyril’s mind, What if he did not intend to return? Could a more horrible death be devised for the victims of his vengeance than this which grew closer every moment? The cold sweat stood on Cyril’s brow; but he would not alarm the Queen further, far less suggest to her that her son also was absolutely in Giorgei’s power. He felt that he must do something, and throwing back the shutter, he looked narrowly at the shining, water-washed wall below the sill. There was no trace of any crevice or projection that might help in the descent, and at the foot nothing was visible but the foaming torrent. It was evident that the old man knew of some shelf of rock which afforded a safe standpoint; but to allow oneself to drop into the cataract on the mere chance of finding it would be a feat of such foolhardiness that only the direst necessity could impel a man to risk it. Still, it was for dear life. But the Queen—for her it would be simply impossible. The matter was decided. Cyril closed the shutter again sharply, for the draught served to intensify the force of the flames, and turned to his companion, who had pressed close to the window to enjoy the cooler air.
“It’s no good,” he said; “we can’t do it.”
“No good!” repeated the Queen, her eyes dilated with horror.
“We can do nothing unless old Giorgei comes back, and he has been gone more than ten minutes already.”
“More than ten minutes! He must have been gone two hours—two hours at least. But tell me, if I were not here, could you escape?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then that means that you could. You are sacrificing yourself for me, and it can do no good to either of us. Leave me, and save yourself, I command you.”
Cyril did not offer to stir, and she repeated the order in a tone tremulous with excitement.