Indeed, the invasion of the English was followed closely by the fearful depredations of the Free Companies and the general insurrection of the peasantry. Convulsed by these successive blows, France had little time or energy to spare for internal affairs, and if the news of the capture of Ruthènes ever reached the ears of the authorities, they were too much occupied to take any action, and the matter was allowed to fade into the obscurity of the past.
CHAPTER XXII
The Last of Ruthènes
The shock and strain of their trying ordeal beneath the castle moat was so great that it was some days before the lady Beatrice and her maid were sufficiently recovered to leave the shelter of their quiet retreat on the slopes of the mountains. They were tended devotedly by the kindly women-folk of the peasantry, and regularly visited by Edgar and Peter; but even so, it was nearly a week before Beatrice, eager to be gone though she was, could pronounce herself fit to travel on horseback.
When the news of their approaching departure was told to Father Armand he showed much concern.
"Deeply sorry shall I be to lose thee," he said to Edgar in a voice in which there was more than a trace of sadness. "I know that thy path and mine must diverge widely and that I shall never see thee more. We have been comrades, and stood shoulder to shoulder for a brief space, and it wrings my heart that it must be so no more. But come, 'tis useless to dwell upon our sorrows; the last act in the story of the freeing of Ruthènes is about to commence, and at least thou wilt stay to witness it?"
"What act is that, Father? The castle is now razed to the ground, and all seemeth already over."
"Nay, there is still one thing more to be done. Ye men of war think that once the citadel is captured all is done that is worth doing. Stay with us for a few short hours and then all will be ready."
Edgar assented gladly enough, for the thoughts of a final parting from the brave old priest were far from pleasing. The time was occupied in preparations for the departure, and when a summons came from Father Armand to meet him before the castle ruins all was in readiness for the journey.
Leading their horses through the wood, the little party presently emerged on the strip of sward which once surrounded the castle, and found themselves in the presence of an assemblage of the whole of the peasantry of the neighbourhood, drawn up in orderly array as though summoned to a ceremony. In front stood the priest, and as the ladies, Edgar, and Peter came into sight he beckoned them to approach. The contrast was great. Father Armand was robed as for Mass, while Edgar and Peter had donned most of their armour, and looked as martial as could be.