He saw both his prisoners, one of them with extended arms,
at the ends of which glistened revolver barrels.
"The devil!" he said.
"Maybe it is," replied Maurice. "Now, my gay banqueteers, open
the door; and the first man who makes a suspicious movement will
find that I'm a tolerable shot."
"Seize him, your Excellency!" shouted one of the troopers.
"Those are my revolvers he has, and they are not loaded."
CHAPTER VIII
THE RED CHATEAU
Two o'clock in the morning, on the king's highway, and a small
body of horse making progress. The moon was beginning to roll
away toward the west, but the world was still frost-white, and
the broad road stretched out like a silver ribbon before the
horsemen, until it was lost in the blue mist of the forests.
The troop consisted of ten men, two of whom rode with their
hands tied behind their backs and their feet fastened under the
bellies of the horses. The troop was not conspicuous for this
alone. Three others had their heads done up in handkerchiefs,
and a fourth carried his arm in a sling.
Five miles to the rear lay the sleeping city of Bleiberg, twenty
miles beyond rose the formidable heights of the Thalians.
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