Page:Sienkiewicz - The knights of the cross.djvu/121

Rh but we are not permitted to disgrace ourselves before them. What would they think, and their guests, who assemble from the whole world, if I should let out a noble condemned to death because he wants to go to them for a duel? Would they believe that punishment would touch him, or that there is justice in our kingdom? I would rather cut off one head than yield the king and the kingdom to death." To this the princess replied that justice which did not allow a relative of the king to get pardon for a man seemed to her strange justice. 'Mercy serves the king, but lack of justice serves him not,' said the castellan. At last they fell to disputing, for the princess was borne away by her anger. 'Then do not let him rot in prison!' said she. 'To-morrow I will give the order to make a scaffold on the square,' replied the castellan. With that they parted. Poor boy, the Lord Jesus alone can save thee!"

A long silence followed.

"How?" asked Zbyshko, in a low voice. "Then it will be right away?"

"In two or three days. When there is no help, there is no help; I have done all I could. I fell at the castellan's feet, I begged for pardon, but he held to his position: 'Find a law or a pretext.' But what could I find? I went to Father Stanislav of Skarbimir to bring the Lord God to thee. Let even that glory be thine, that the man confessed thee who confessed the queen. But I did not find him at home; he was with Princess Anna."

"Perhaps with Danusia?"

"Oh, pray to the Lord for thyself. That girl is better and better. I will go to the priest before daybreak to-morrow. They say that after confessing to him, salvation is as sure to thee as if thou hadst it tied up in a bag."

Zbyshko sat down, rested his elbows on his knees, and bent his head so that the hair covered his face altogether. The old man looked at him a long time, and said at last in a low voice,—

"Zbyshko! Zbyshko!"

The youth raised his face, which was angry and filled with cold stubbornness rather than pain.

"Well, what is it?"

"Listen carefully, for I may have found something." He pushed up nearer and spoke almost in a whisper: "Thou hast heard of Prince Vitold, how formerly he was imprisoned in Krev by Yagello, our present king; he escaped from

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