Roger turned and went with us. "I saw him with the flag," he remarked. "'Twas a gallant deed. It helped us to win the battle. By my word, Cossé must have lost frightfully; the field just here looks carpeted with the dead."
"'Tis a fearful sight to see in cold blood," I replied.
Numbers of men were removing the wounded, but knowing that Felix had ridden some distance ahead we kept steadily on our way.
"'Twas here Cossé's troops began to break," said Jacques presently, "and 'tis hereabout we ought to find Monsieur Bellièvre's body."
The words jarred upon me horribly; they expressed the thought I was trying hard to keep out of my head.
We went quickly from one to the other, doing what we could for the wounded, and hurrying on again. It was a gruesome task, and the fear of finding what we sought so earnestly added to the horror.
Suddenly my heart gave a leap, and I ran forward quickly to where I saw the colour of the blood-stained flag. A dead horse lay near it, and by the animal's side lay my comrade. His head was bare, and his fair hair clustered in curls over his forehead. He was very white and still, and his eyes were closed.
"Poor fellow; I fear he is past help," murmured Roger.
"Let us find out," advised the practical Jacques, and, kneeling down on the other side, he assisted me to loosen the doublet.