 CHAPTER VI The Castle of Dunbane was still the scene of triumph and of wretchedness. Malcolm, exulting in his scheme, already beheld Mary at his feet, and the Earl retiring in an anguish more poignant than that of death, he was surprised that his invention had not before supplied him with this means of torture, for the first time he welcomed love as the instrument of his revenge, and the charms of Mary were heightened to his imagination by the ardent colors of this passion. He was confirmed in his resolves never to relinquish the Earl but on the conditions he had offered, and thus forever would he preserve the House of Othlin, a monument of his triumph. Osbert, for greater security was conveyed from the tower into a more centricle part of the castle, to an apartment spacious but gloomy, whose gothic windows partly excluding light threw a solemnity around which chilled the heart almost to horror. He heeded not this. His heart was occupied with horrors of its own. He was now involved in a misery more intricate and more dreadful than his imagination had yet painted. To die was to him who had so long contemplated the near approach of death, a familiar and transient evil, but to see even in idea his family involved in infamy and in union with a murderer was the stroke which pierced his heart to its center. He feared that the cruel tenderness of the mother would tempt Matilda to accept the offers of the Baron, and he scarcely doubted that the noble Mary would resign herself the price of his life. He would have written to the Countess to have forbidden her acceptance of the terms, and to have declared his fixed resolution to die, but that he had no means of conveying to her a letter. The soldier who had so generously undertaken the conveyance of his former one, having soon after disappeared from his station. The manly fortitude which had supported him through his former trials did not desert him in this hour of darkness, habituated so long to struggle with opposing feelings, he had acquired the art of managing them. His mind attained a confidence in its powers. Resistance served only to increase its strength, and to confirm the magnanimity of its nature. Allen had now joined the clan, and was ardent in pursuit of the necessary intelligence. He learned that the Earl had been removed from the tower, but in what part of the castle he was now confined he could not discover. On this point all was vague conjecture. That he was alive was only judged from the policy of the Baron, whose ardent passion for Mary was now well understood. Allen employed every stratagem his invention could suggest to discover the prison of the Earl, but without success, at length compelled to deliver to Malcolm the message of the Countess. He demanded as a preliminary that the Earl should be shown to his people from the Ramparts, that they might be certain he was still alive. Allen hoped that his appearance would lead to a discovery of the place of his imprisonment, purposing to observe narrowly the way by which he should retire. The Earl appeared in safety on the Ramparts amid the shouts and acclamations of his people. The Baron frowning defiance was seen at his side. Allen advanced to the walls and delivered the message of Matilda. Osbert started at its purpose. He foresaw that deliberation portended compliance, and with a tongue with a thought he swore aloud he never would survive the infamy of the concession. And addressing himself to Allen commanded him instantly to return to the Countess and bid her spurn the base compliance, as she feared to sacrifice both her children to the murderer of their father. At these words a smile of haughty triumph marked the features of the Baron, and he turned from Osbert in silent joy and exultation. The Earl was led off by the guards. Allen endeavored in vain to mark the way they took. The lofty walls soon concealed them from his view. Allen now experienced how strenuously a vigorous mind protects its favorite hope. Wayward circumstances may shock. Disappointment may check it, but it rises superior to opposition and traverses the sphere of possibility to accomplish its purpose. Allen did not yet despair, but he was perplexed in what manner to proceed. In his way from the ramparts Osbert was surprised by the appearance of two ladies at a window near which he passed. The agitation of his mind did not prevent his recognizing them, as the same he had observed from the greats of the tower, with such lively admiration, and who had excited in his mind so much pity and curiosity. In the midst of his distress his thoughts had often dwelt on the sweet graces of the younger, and he had sighed to obtain the story of her sorrows, for the melancholy which hung upon her features proclaimed her to be unfortunate. They now stood observing Osbert as he passed, and their eyes expressed the pity which his situation inspired. He gazed earnestly and mournfully upon them, and when he entered his prison again inquired concerning them, but the same inflexible silence was preserved on the subject. As the Earl sat one day musing in his prison, his eyes involuntarily fixed upon a panel in the opposite Wainscott. He observed that it was differently formed from the rest, and that its projection was somewhat greater. A hope started into his mind, and he quitted his seat to examine it. He perceived that it was surrounded by a small crack, and on pushing it with his hands it shook under them. Certain that it was something more than a panel, he exerted all his strength against it, but without producing any new effect. Having tried various means to move it without success, he gave up the experiment and returned to his seat, melancholy and disappointed. Several days passed without any further notice being taken of the Wainscott. Unwilling, however, to relinquish a last hope, he returned to the examination, when, endeavoring to remove the panel, his foot accidentally hit against one corner, and it suddenly flew open. It had been contrived that a spring which was concealed within, and which fastened the partition, should receive its impulse from the pressure of a certain part of the panel, which was now touched by the foot of the Earl. His joy on the discovery cannot be expressed. An apartment wide and forlorn, like that which formed his prison, now lay before him. The windows, which were high and arched, were decorated with painted glass. The floor was paved with marble, and it seemed to be the deserted remains of a place of worship. Osbert traversed with hesitating steps, its dreary length, towards a pair of folding doors, large and of oak, which closed the apartment. These he opened. A gallery, gloomy and vast, appeared beyond the windows, which were in the same style of gothic architecture with a former, were shaded by thick ivy that almost excluded the light. Osbert stood at the entrance, uncertain whether to proceed. He listened, but heard no footstep in his prison, and determined to go on. The gallery terminated on the left in a large, winding staircase, old and apparently neglected, which led to a hall below. On the right was a door, low and rather obscure. Osbert, apprehensive of discovery, passed the staircase and opened the door, when a suite of noble apartments, magnificently furnished, was disclosed to his wondering eyes. He proceeded onward without perceiving any person, but having passed the second room, heard the faint sobs of a person weeping. He stood for a moment, undetermined whether to proceed, but an irresistible curiosity propelled him forward, and he entered an apartment in which were seated the beautiful strangers, whose appearance had so much interested his feelings. The elder of the ladies was dissolved in tears and a casket and some papers lay open on a table beside her. The younger was so intent upon a drawing, which she seemed to be finishing, as not to observe the entrance of the Earl. The elder lady on perceiving him arose in some confusion, and the surprise in her seemed to demand an explanation of so unaccountable a visit. The Earl surprised at what he beheld, stepped back with an intention of retiring, but recollecting that the intrusion manned an apology, he returned. The grace with which he excused himself confirmed the impression which his figure had already made on the mind of Laura, which was the name of the younger lady, who on looking up discovered accountants in which her face and sweetness were happily blended. She appeared to be about twenty. Her person was of the middle stature, extremely delicate and very elegantly formed. The bloom of her youth was shaded by a soft and pensive melancholy, which communicated an expression to her fine blue eyes, extremely interesting. Her features were partly concealed by the beautiful luxuriance of her auburn hair, which curling round her face descended in tresses on her bosom. Every feminine grace played around her, and the simple dignity of her air declared the purity and the nobility of her mind. On perceiving the Earl a faint blush animated her cheek, and she involuntarily quitted the drawing upon which she had been engaged. If the former imperfect view he had caught of Laura had given an impression to the heart of Osbert, it now received a stronger character from the opportunity afforded him of contemplating her beauty. He concluded that the baron, attracted by her charms, had entrapped her into his power, and attained her in the castle an unwilling prisoner. In this conjecture he was confirmed by the mournful cast of accountants, and by the mystery which appeared to surround her. Fired by this idea he melted in compassion for her sufferings, which compassion was tintured and increased by the passion which now glowed in his heart. At that moment he forgot the danger of his present situation. He forgot even that he was a prisoner, and awake only to the wish of alleviating her sorrows. He rejected cold and useless delicacy and resolved, if possible, to learn the cause of her misfortunes. Addressing himself to the baroness, if madame, said he, I could by any means soften the affliction which I cannot affect not to receive, and which has so warmly interested my feelings, I should regard this as one of the most happy moments of my life, a life marked alas, too strongly with misery, but misery has not been useless, since it has taught me sympathy. The baroness was no stranger to the character and the misfortunes of the earl. Herself the victim of oppression, she knew how to commiserate the sufferings of others. She had ever felt a tender compassion for his misfortunes of Osbert, and did not now withhold sincere expressions of sympathy and of gratitude, for the interest which he felt in her sorrow. She expressed her surprise at seeing him thus at liberty, but observing the chains which encircled his hands, she shuddered, and guessed a part of the truth. He explained to her the discovery of the panel, by which circumstance he had found his way into that apartment. The idea of leading him to escape rushed upon the mind of the baroness, but was repressed by the consideration of her own confined situation, and she was compelled, with mournful reluctance, to resign that thought which reverence for the character of the late earl and compassion for the misfortunes of the present had inspired. She lamented her inability to assist him, and informed him that herself and her daughter were alike prisoners with himself, that the walls of the castle were the limits of their liberty, and that they had suffered the pressure of tyranny for fifteen years. The earl expressed the indignation which he felt at this recital, and solicited the baroness to confide in his integrity, and if the relation would not be too painful to her, to honour him so far as to acquaint him by what cruel means she fell into the power of Malcolm. The baroness, apprehensive for his safety, reminded him of the risk of discovery by a longer absence from his prison, and thanking him again for the interest he took in her sufferings, assured him of her warmest wishes for his deliverance, and that if an opportunity ever offered she would acquaint him with the sad particulars of her story. The eyes of Osbert made known that gratitude which was difficult for his tongue to utter. Trimulously he solicited the consolation of sometimes revisiting the apartments of the baroness, a permission which would give him some intervals of comfort amid the many hours of torment to which he was condemned. The baroness in compassion to his sufferings granted the request. The earl departed, gazing on Laura with eyes of mournful tenderness, yet he was pleased with what had passed, and retired to his prison in one of those peaceful intervals which are known even to the wretched. He found all quiet, and closing the panel in safety, sat down to consider the past and anticipate the future. He was flattered with hopes that the discovery of the panel might aid him to escape. The glooms of despondence which had lately enveloped his mind gradually disappeared, and joy once more illumined his prospects. But it was the sunshine of an April morn deceitful and momentary. He recollected that the castle was beset with guards whose vigilance was ensured by the severity of the baron. He remembered that the strangers who had taken so kind and interest in his fate were prisoners like himself, and that he had no generous soldier to teach him the secret windings of the castle and to accompany him in flight. His imagination was haunted by the image of Laura, vainly he strove to disguise from himself the truth. His heart constantly belied the sophistry of his reasonings. Unwarily he had drank the draft of love, and he was compelled to acknowledge the fatal indiscretion. He could not, however, resolve to throw from his heart the delicious poison. He could not resolve to see her no more. The painful apprehension for his safety, which his forbearing to renew the visit he had so earnestly solicited, would occasion the baroness, the apparent disrespect it would convey, the ardent curiosity with which he longed to obtain the history of her misfortunes, the lively interest he felt in learning the situation of Laura, with respect to the baron, and the hope, the wild hope with which he deluded his reason that he might be able to assist them, determined him to repeat the visit. Under these illusions the motive which principally impelled him to the interview was concealed. In the meantime Alan had returned to the castle of Othlin with the illusions of the Earl, whose resolves served only to aggravate the distress of its fair inhabitants. Alan, however, unwilling to crush a last hope, tenderly concealed from them the circumstance of the Earl's removal from the tower, silently and almost hopelessly meditating to discover his prison, and administered that comfort to the Countess and to marry, which his own expectation would not suffer him to participate. He retired in haste to the veterans whom he had before assembled, and acquainted them with the removal of the Earl, which circumstance must for the present suspend their consultations. He left them therefore, and instantly returned to the clan, there to prosecute his inquiries. Every possible exertion was made to obtain the necessary intelligence, but without success. The moment in which the baron would demand the answer of the Countess was now fast approaching, and every heart sunk in despair. When one night the sentinels of the camp were alarmed by the approach of men, who hailed them in unknown voices, fearful of surprise they surrounded the strangers, and led them to Alan, to whom they related that they fled from the capricious tyranny of Malcolm, and sought refuge in the camp of his enemy, whose misfortunes they bewailed, and in whose cause they enlisted. Rejoiced of the circumstance, yet doubtful of its truth, Alan interrogated the soldiers concerning the prison of the Earl. From them he learned that Osbert was confined in a part of the castle extremely difficult to access, and that any plan of escape must be utterly impracticable without the assistance of one well acquainted with the various intricacies of the pile. An opportunity of success was now presented with which the most sanguine hopes of Alan had never flattered him. He received from the soldiers strong assurance of assistance. From them likewise he learned that discontent reigned among the people of the baron, who, impatient of the yoke of tyranny, only waited a favorable opportunity to throw it off, and resumed the rites of nature. That the vigilant suspicions of Malcolm excited him to punish with the harshest severity every appearance of inattention. That being condemned to suffer a very heavy punishment for a slight offense, they had eluded the impending misery and the future oppression of their chief by desertion. Alan immediately convened a counsel before whom the soldiers were brought. They repeated their former assertions, and one of the fugitives added that he had a brother whose place of guard over the person of the Earl on that night had made it difficult to elude observation, and had prevented his escaping with them. That on the night of the morrow he stood guard at the gate of the lesser drawbridge, where the sentinels were few, that he was himself willing to risk the danger of conversing with him, and had little doubt of gaining him to assist in the deliverance of the Earl. At these words the heart of Alan throbbed with joy. He promised large rewards to the brave soldier and to his brother, if they undertook the enterprise. His companion was well acquainted with the subterraneous passages of the rock and expressed himself desirous of being useful. The hopes of Alan every instant grew stronger, and he vainly wished at that moment to communicate to the Earl's unhappy family the joy which dilated his heart. The eve of the following day was fixed upon to commence their designs, when James should endeavor to gain his brother to their purpose. Having adjusted these matters they retired to rest for the remainder of the night. But sleep had fled the eyes of Alan. Anxious expectation filled his mind, and he saw in the waking visions of fancy the meeting of the Earl with his family. He anticipated the thanks he should receive from the lovely Mary and sighed at the recollection that thanks were all for which he could ever dare to hope. At length the dawn appeared and waked the clan to hopes and prospects far different from the preceding mourn. The hours hung heavily on the expectation of Alan, whose mind was filled with solicitude for the event of the meeting between the brothers. Night at length came to his wishes. The darkness was interrupted only by the faint light of the moon moving through the watery and broken clouds which enveloped the horizon. Tumultuous gusts of wind broke at intervals the silence of the hour. Alan watched the movements of the castle. He observed the lights successively disappear. The bell from the watchtower chimed one. All was still within the walls. And James ventured forth to the drawbridge. The drawbridge divided in the center, and the half next the plains was down. He mounted it, and in a low yet firm voice called on Edmund. No answer was returned, and he began to fear that his brother had already quitted the castle. He gained some time in silent suspense before he repeated the call when he heard the gate of the drawbridge gently unbarred and Edmund appeared. He was surprised to see James and bade him instantly fly the danger that surrounded him. The baron incensed at the frequent desertion of his soldiers had sent out people in pursuit and had promised considerable rewards for the apprehension of the fugitives. James, undaunted by what he heard, kept his ground, resolved to urge his purpose to the point. Happily the sentinels who stood guard with Edmund overcome with the effect of a potion he had administered to favor his escape were sunk in sleep, and the soldiers conducted their discourse in a low voice without interruption. Edmund was unwilling to defer his flight and possessed not resolution sufficient to encounter the hazard of the enterprise till the proffered reward had been sold his self-denial and roused his slumbering courage. He was well acquainted with the subterraneous avenues of the castle. The only remaining difficulty was that of deceiving the vigilance of his fellow sentinels, whose watchfulness made it impossible for the Earl to quit his prison unperceived. The soldiers who were to mount guard with him on the following night were stationed in a distant part of the castle till the hour of their removal to the door of the prison. It was more difficult to administer to them that draft which had steeped in forgetfulness the senses of his present associates. To confide to their integrity and endeavor to win them to his purpose was certainly to give his life into their hands and probably to aggravate the disastrous fate of the Earl. This scheme was beset too thick with dangers to be hazarded, and their invention could furnish them with none more promising. It was, however, agreed that on the following night Edmund should seize the moment of opportunity to impart to the Earl the designs of his friends and to consult on the means of accomplishing them. Thus concluding, James returned in safety to the tent of Allen, where the most considerable of the clan were assembled. There awaiting with impatient solicitude his arrival. The hopes of Allen were somewhat chilled by the report of the soldier, from the vigilance which beset the doors of the prison escape from thence appeared impracticable. He was condemned, however, to linger in suspense till the third night from the present when the return of Edmund to his station at the bridge would enable him again to commune with his brother. But Allen was unsuspicious of a circumstance which would utterly have defeated his hopes and whose consequence threatened destruction to all their schemes. A sentinel on duty upon that part of the rampart which surmounted the drawbridge had been alarmed by hearing the gate unbar and approaching the wall had perceived a man standing on the half of the bridge which was dropped and in converse with some person on the castle walls. He drew as near as the wall would permit and endeavored to listen to their discourse. The gloom of night prevented his recognizing the person on the bridge but he could clearly distinguish the voice of Edmund in that of a man who was addressed excited by new wonder he gave all his attention to discover the subject of their conversation. The distance occasioned between the brothers by the suspended half of the bridge obliged them to speak in a somewhat higher tone than they would otherwise have done and the sentinel gathered sufficient from their discourse to learn that they were concerning the rescue of the Earl. That the night of Edmund's watch at the prison was to be the night of enterprise and that some friends of the Earl were to await him in the environs of the castle. All this he treasured up and the next morning communicated it to his comrades. On the following evening the Earl yielding to the impulse of his heart once more unclosed his partition and sought the apartments of the Baroness. She received him with expressions of satisfaction. While the artless pleasure which lighted up the countenance of Laura awakened the pulse of rapture in that heart which had long throbbed only to misery. The Earl reminded the Baroness of her former promise which the desire of exciting sympathy in those we esteem and the melancholy pleasure which the heart finds in lingering among the scenes of former happiness had induced her to give. She endeavored to compose her spirits which were agitated by the remembrance of past sufferings and gave him a relation of the following circumstances. CHAPTER VII Luisa Baroness Malcolm was the descendant of an ancient and honorable house in Switzerland. Her father, the Marquis de Sainte Claire, inherited all those brave qualities and that stern virtue which had so eminently distinguished his ancestors. Early in life he lost a wife whom he tenderly loved and he seemed to derive his sole consolation from the education of the dear children she had left behind. His son, whom he had brought up to the arms himself so honorably bore, fell before he reached his nineteenth year in the service of his country. An elder daughter died in infancy. Luisa was his sole surviving child. His chateau was situated in one of those delightful valleys of the Swiss cantons in which the beautiful and the sublime are so happily united where the magnificent features of the scenery are contrasted and their effect heightened by the blooming luxuriance of woods and pastures by the gentle winding of the stream and the peaceful aspect of the cottage. The Marquis was now retired from the service for gray age had overtaken him. His residence was the resort of foreigners of distinction who attracted by the united talents of the soldier and the philosopher under his roof partook of the hospitality so characteristic of his country. Among the visitors of this description was the late Baron Malcolm, brother to the present chief, who then traveled through Switzerland. The beauty of Luisa embellished by the elegance of a mind highly cultivated touched his heart and he solicited her hand in marriage. The manly sense of the Baron and the excellencies of his disposition had not passed unobserved or unapproved by the Marquis. While the graces of his person and of his mind had anticipated for him in the heart of Luisa a preeminence over every other suitor. The Marquis had but one objection to the marriage. This was likewise the objection of Luisa. Neither the one nor the other could endure the idea of the distance which was to separate them. Luisa was to the Marquis the last prop of his declining years. The Marquis was to Luisa the father and the friend to whom her heart had hitherto been solely devoted and from whom it could not now be torn but with an anguish equal to its attachment. This remained an insurmountable obstacle till it was removed by the tenderness of the Baron who entreated the Marquis to quit Switzerland and reside with his daughter in Scotland. The attachment of the Marquis to his natal land and the pride of her redditary dominion was too powerful to suffer him to acquiesce in the proposal without much struggle of contending feelings. The desire of securing the happiness of his child by a union with a character so excellent as the Barons and of seeing her settled before death should deprive her of the protection of a father. At length subdued every other consideration and he resigned the hand of his daughter to the Baron Malcolm. The Marquis adjusted his affairs and consigning his estates to the care of trusty agents bade a last adieu to his beloved country. That country which during sixty years had been the principal scene of his happiness and of his regrets. The course of years had not obliterated from his heart the early affections of his youth. He took a farewell of that grave which enclosed the reliquaries of his wife, from which it was not his least effort to depart, and whether he ordered that his remains should be conveyed. Louise acquitted Switzerland with a concern scarcely less acute than that of her father. The poignancy of which, however, was greatly softened by the tender assiduities of her Lord, whose affectionate attentions hourly heightened her esteem and increased her love. They arrived at Scotland without any accident where the Baron welcomed Louise as the mistress of his domains. The Marquis de Saint Clair had apartments in the castle where the evening of his days declined in peaceful happiness. Before his death he had the pleasure of seeing his race renewed in the children of the Baroness, in a son who was called by the name of the Marquis, and in a daughter who now shared with her mother the sorrows of confinement. On the death of the Marquis it was necessary for the Baron to visit Switzerland in order to take possession of his estates and to adjust some affairs which a long absence had deranged. He attended the remains of the Marquis to their last abode. The Baroness desirous of once more beholding her native country and anxious to pay a last respect to the memory of her father entrusted her children to the care of a faithful old servant whom she had brought with her from the valoi, and who had been her early childhood, and accompanied the Baron to the continent. Having deposited the remains of the Marquis according to his wish in the tomb of his wife, and arranged their affairs they returned to Scotland where the first intelligence they received on their arrival at the castle was of the death of their son, and of the old nurse his attendant. The servant had died soon after their departure, the child only a fortnight before their return. This disastrous event affected equally the Baron and his lady, who never ceased to condemn herself for having entrusted her son to the care of servants. Time, however, subdued the poignancy of this affliction, but came fraught with another. Yet more acute this was the death of the Baron, who in the pride of youth constituting the felicity of his family and of his people was killed by a fall from his horse which he received in hunting. He left the Baroness and an only daughter to bewail with unceasing sorrow his loss. The paternal estates devolved of course to his only brother, the present Baron, whose character formed a mournful and striking contrast to that of the deceased Lord. All his personal property which was considerable with the estates in Switzerland he bequeathed to his beloved wife and daughter. The new Baron immediately on the demise of his brother took possession of the castle, but allowed the Baroness with a part of her suit to remain its inhabitant till the expiration of the year. The Baroness absorbed in grief still loved to recall in the scene of her late felicity the image of her Lord and to linger in his former haunts. This motive together with the necessity of preparation for a journey to Switzerland induced her to accept the offer of the Baron. The memory of his brother had quickly faded from the mind of Malcolm whose attention appeared to be wholly occupied by schemes of avarice and ambition. His arrogance and boundless love of power embroiled him with the neighbouring chiefs and engaged him in continual hostility. His seldom visited the Baroness when he did his manner was cold and even haughty. The Baroness shocked to receive such treatment from the brother of her deceased Lord and reduced to feel herself an unwelcome guest in that castle which she had been to consider as her own determined to set off for the continent immediately and seek in the solitudes of her native mountains an asylum from the frown of insulting power. The contrast of character between the brothers drew many a sigh of bitter recollection from her heart and added weight to the sorrows which already oppressed it. She gave orders therefore to her domestics to prepare for immediate departure but was soon after told that the Baron had forbade them to obey the command. Astonished at this circumstance she had not time to demand an explanation ere a message from Malcolm required a few moments private conversation. The messenger was followed almost instantly by the Baron who entered the apartment with hurried steps. His countenance overspread with a dark purposes of his soul. I come, madam, said he in a voice stern and determined to inform you that you quit not this castle. The estates which you call yours are mine and think not that I shall neglect to prosecute my claim. The frequent and ill time generosity of my brother have diminished the value of the lands which are mine by inheritance and I have therefore an indispensable right to repay myself from those estates which he acquired with you. In point of justice he possessed not the right of devising these estates and I shall not suffer myself to be deceived by the evasions of the law. Resign therefore the will which remains only a record of unjust wishes and ineffectual claims. When the receipts from your estates have satisfied my demands they shall again be yours. The apartments you now inhabit shall remain your own but beyond the wall of this castle you shall not pass for I will not by suffering your departure afford you an opportunity of contesting those rights which I can enforce without opposition. Overcome with astonishment and dread the Baroness was for some time deprived of all power of reply. At length roused by the spirit of indignation I am too well informed my lord, said she, of my just claims to the lands in question and know also too well the value of that integrity which is now no more. To credit your bold assertions they serve only to unveil to me the darkness of a character cruel and rapacious whose boundless avarice trampling on the barriers of justice and humanity seizes on the right of the defenseless widow and on the portion of the unresisting orphan. This my lord you are permitted to do they have no means of resistance but think not to impose on me by a sophisticated assertion of right or to gloss the villainy of your conduct with the colors of justice. The artifice is beneath the desperate force of your character and is not sufficiently specious to deceive the discernment of virtue. Being your prisoner I have no means of escaping but never my lord will I resign into your hands that will which is the efficient bond of my rights and the last sad record of the affection of my departed lord. Grief closed her lips. The Baron denouncing vengeance on her resistance his features inflamed with rage quitted the apartment. The Baroness was left to lament with deepening anguish the stroke which had deprived her of a beloved husband and reflection gave her the wretchedness of her situation in yet more lively colors. She was now a stranger in a foreign land deprived by him of whom she had a right to demand protection of all her possessions a prisoner in his castle without one friend to vindicate her cause and far remote from any means of appeal to the laws of the country. She wept over the youthful Laura and while she pressed her with mournful fondness to her realism she was confirmed in her resolution never to relinquish that will by which alone the rights of her injured child could ever be ascertained. The Baron bold in iniquity obtained by forged powers the revenues of the foreign estates and by this means effectually kept the Baroness in his power and deprived her of her last resource. Secure in the possession of the estates and of the Baroness he no longer regarded the will as an object of importance and as she did not attempt any means of escape or the recovery of her rights he suffered her to remain undisturbed and in quiet possession of the will. The Baroness now passed her days an unverified sorrow except in those intervals when she forced her mind from its melancholy subject and devoted herself to the education of her daughter. The artless efforts of Laura to assuage the sorrows of her mother only fixed them in her heart in deeper impression since they gave to her mind in stronger tense the cruelty and oppression to which her tender years were condemned. The progress which she made in music and drawing and in the lighter subjects of literature while it pleased the Baroness who was her soul instructress brought with it the bitter apprehension that these accomplishments would probably be buried in the obscurity of a prison still however they were not useless since they served at present to cheat affliction of many a weary moment and would in future delude the melancholy hours of solitude. Laura was particularly fond of the loot which she touched with exquisite sensibility and whose tender notes were so sweetly in unison with the chords of sorrow and with us plaintive tones with which she loved to accompany it. While she sung the Baroness would sit absorbed in recollection the tears fast falling from her eyes and she might be said to taste in those moments the luxury of woe. Malcolm, stung with a sense of guilt, avoided the presence of his injured captive and sought an asylum from conscience in the busy scenes of war. Eighteen years had now elapsed since the death of the Baron and the confinement of Louisa. Time had blunted the point of affliction though it still retained its venom but she seldom dared to hope for that which for eighteen years had been withheld. She derived her only consolation from the improvement and the tender sympathy of her daughter, who endeavored by every soothing attention to alleviate the sorrows of her parent. It was at this period that the Baroness communicated to the Earl the story of her calamities. The Earl listened with deep attention to the recital. His soul burned with indignation against the Baron. While his heart gave to the sufferings of the fair mourners all that sympathy could ask. Yet he was relieved from a very painful sensation when he learned that the beauty of Lara had not influenced the conduct of the Baron. Her oppressed situation struck upon his heart the finest touch of pity and the passion which her beauty and her simplicity had inspired was strengthened and millerated by her misfortunes. The fate of his father and the idea of his own injuries rushed upon his mind. And combining with the sufferings of the victims now before him roused in his soul a storm of indignation little inferior to that he had suffered in his first interview with the Baron. Every consideration sunk before the impulse of a just revenge. His mind occupied with a hateful image of the murderer was hardened against danger and in the first energies of his resentment he would have rushed to the apartment of Malcolm and striking the sword of justice in his heart have delivered the earth from a monster and have resigned himself the willing sacrifice of the action. Shall the monster live? cried he rising from his seat. His step was hurried and his countenance was stamped with a stern virtue. The Baroness was alarmed and following him to the door of her apartment which he had half opened conjured him to pause for a moment on the dangers that surrounded him. The voice of reason in the accents of the Baroness interrupted the hurried to molt of his soul. The illusions of passion disappeared. He recollected that he was ignorant of the apartment of the Baron and that he had no weapon to assist his purpose. And he found himself as a traveler on enchanted ground when the wand of the magician suddenly dissolves the air he seen and leaves him environed with the horrors of solitude and of darkness. The Earl returned to his seat hopeless and dejected and lost to everything but the bitterness of disappointment. He forgot where he was and the lateness of the hour till reminded by the Baroness of the dangers of a longer stay when he mournfully bade her good night and advancing to Laura with timid respect pressed her hand tenderly to his lips and retired to his prison. CHAPTER VIII. He had now opened the partition and was entering the room when by the faint gleam which the fire threw across the apartment he perceived indistinctly the figure of a man, and in the same instant heard the sound of approaching armour. Surprise and horror thrilled through every nerve. He remained fixed to the spot and for some moments hesitated weather to retire. A fearful silence ensued. The person whom he thought he had seen disappeared in the darkness of the room. The noise of armour was heard no more and he began to think that the figure he had seen and the sound he had heard were the phantoms of a sick imagination which the agitation of his spirits, the solemnity of the hour and the wide desolation of the place had conjured up. The low sounds of an unknown voice now started upon his ear. It seemed to be almost close beside him. He sprung onward and his hand grasped the steely coldness of armour. While the arm it enclosed struggled to get free. Speak what wretch art thou? cried Osbert when a sudden blaze of light from the fire discovered to him a soldier of the barren. His agitation for some time prevented his observing that there was more of alarm than of design expressed in the countenance of the man. But the apprehension of the earl was quickly lost in astonishment. When he beheld the guard at his feet it was Edmund who had entered the prison under pretense of carrying fuel to the fire but secretly for the purpose of conferring with Osbert. When the earl understood he came from Allen his bosom glowed with gratitude towards that generous youth whose steady and active zeal had never relaxed since the hour in which he first engaged in his cause. The transport of his heart may be easily imagined when he learned the schemes that were planning for his deliverance. The circumstance which had nearly defeated the warm hopes of his friends was by him disregarded. Since the knowledge of the secret door opened to him with the assistance of a guide through the intricacies of the castle a certain means of escape. Edmund was well acquainted with all these. The earl told him of the discovery of the false panel, bade him return to Allen with a joyful intelligence and on his next night of watch prepared to aid him in escape. Edmund knew well the apartments which Osbert described and the great staircase which led into a part of the castle that had long been totally forsaken and from whence it was easy to pass unobserved into the vaults which communicated with the subterraneous passages in the rock. Allen heard the report of James with a warm and generous joy which impelled him to Haston immediately to the castle of Offlin and dispel the sorrows that inhabited there. But the consideration that his sudden absence from the camp might create suspicion and invite discovery checked the impulse and he yielded with reluctance to the necessity which condemned the Countess and Mary to the horrors of a lengthened suspense. The Countess meanwhile whose designs strengthened by the steady determination of Mary were unshaken by the message of the earl which she considered as only the effect of a momentary impulse. Watched the gradual departure of those days which led to that which enveloped the fate of her children with agony and fainting hope. She received no news from the camp, no words of comfort from Allen and she saw the confidence which had nourished her existence slowly sinking in despair. Mary sought to administer that comfort to the afflictions of her mother, which her own equally demanded. She strove by the fortitude with which she endeavored to resign herself to soften the asperity of the sufferings which threatened the Countess. And she contemplated the approaching storm with the determined coolness of a mind aspiring to virtue as the chief good. But she sedulously sought to exclude Allen from her mind. His disinterested and noble conduct excited emotions dangerous to her fortitude, in which rendered yet more poignant the tortures of the approaching sacrifice. Anxious to inform the baroness of his approaching deliverance, to assure her of his best services, to bid adieu to Laura and to seize the last opportunity he might ever possess of disclosing to her his admiration and his love. The Earl revisited the apartments of the baroness. She felt a lively pleasure on the prospect of his escape. And Laura, in the joy which animated her on hearing this intelligence, forgot the sorrows of her own situation. Forgot that of which her heart soon reminded her that Osbert was leaving the place of her confinement and that she should probably see him no more. This thought cast a sudden shade over her features, and from the enlivening expression of joy they resumed their wanted melancholy. Osbert marked the momentary change, and his heart spoke to him the occasion. My cup of joy is dashed with bitterness, said he, for amid the happiness of approaching deliverance I quit not my prison without some pangs of keen regret. Pangs which it were probably useless to make known, yet which my feeling would not suffer me at this moment to conceal. Within these walls from whence I fly with eagerness I leave a heart fraught with the most tender passion, a heart which while it beats with life must never unite the image of Laura with the fondness of love. Could I hope that she were not insensible to my attachment I should depart in peace and would defy the obstacles which bid me to spare. Were I even certain that she would repel my love with cold indifference I would yet, if she accept my services, affect her rescue, or give my life the forfeiture. Laura was silent, she wished to speak her gratitude yet feared to tell her love, but the soft timidity of her eye and the tender glow of her cheek revealed the secret that trembled on her lips. The Baroness observed her confusion and thanking the Earl for the noble service he offered, declined accepting it. She besought him to involve no further the peace of his family and of himself by attempting an enterprise so crowded with dangers and which might probably cost him his life. The arguments of the Baroness fell forceless when opposed to the feelings of the Earl. So warmly he urged his suit and dwelt so forcibly on his approaching departure that the Baroness ceased to oppose and the silence of Laura yielded acquiescence. After a tender farewell with many earnest wishes for his safety the Earl quit to the apartment elated with hope. But the Baron had been informed of his projected escape and had studied the means of counteracting it. The Sentinel had communicated his discovery to some of his comrades who without virtue or courage sufficient to quit the service of the Baron were desirous of obtaining his favour and failed not to seize on an opportunity so flattering as the present to accomplish their purpose they communicated to their chief the intelligence they had received. Malcolm careful to conceal his knowledge of the scheme from a design to entrap those of the clan who were to meet the Earl had suffered Edmund to return to his station at the prison where he had placed the informers as secret guards and had taken such other precautions as were necessary to intercept their flight should they allude the vigilance of the soldiers and likewise to secure those of his people who should be drawn toward the castle in expectation of their chief. Having done this he prided himself in security and in the certainty of exalting over his enemies thus entangled in their own stratagem. After many weary moments of impatience to Alan and of expectation to the Earl the night at length arrived on which hung the event of all their hopes. It was agreed that Alan with a chosen few should await the arrival of the Earl in the cavern where terminated the subterraneous avenue. Alan parted from James with extreme agitation and returned to his tent to compose his mind. It was now the dead of night, profound sleep reigned through the castle of Dunbane when Edmund gently unbolted the prison door and hailed the Earl. He sprung forward and instantly unclosed the panel which they fastened after them to prevent discovery and passing with fearful steps the cold and silent apartments descended the great staircase into the hall whose wide and dark desolation was rendered visible only by the dim light of the taper which Edmund carried in his hand and whose vaulted ceiling re-echoed their steps. After various windings they descended into the vaults. In passing their dreary length they often paused in fearful silence listening to the hollow blasts which burst suddenly through the passages and which seemed to bear in the sound the footsteps At length they reached the extremity of the vaults where Edmund searched for a trapped door which lay almost concealed in the dirt and darkness. After some time they found and with difficulty raised it for it was long since it had been opened and it was besides heavy with iron work they entered and letting the door fall after them descended a narrow flight of steps which conducted them to a winding passage closed by a door that opened into the main avenue. Wince Allen had before made his escape having gained this they stepped on with confidence for they were now not far from the cavern where Allen and his companions were awaiting their arrival. The heart of Allen now swelled with joy for he perceived a gleam of distant light break upon the walls of the avenue and at the same time thought he heard the faint sound of approaching footsteps impatient to throw himself at the feet of the Earl he entered the avenue the light grew stronger upon the walls but a point of rock whose projection caused a winding in the passage concealed from his view the persons his eyes so eagerly sought. The sound of steps was now fast approaching and Allen gaining the rock suddenly turned upon three soldiers of the barren they instantly seized him their prisoner. Astonishment for a while overcame every other sensation but as they led him along the horde reverse of the moment struck upon his heart with all its consequences and he had no doubt that the Earl had been seized and carried back to his prison. As he marched along absorbed in this reflection a light appeared at some distance from a door that opened upon the avenue and discovered the figures of two men who on perceiving the party they retreated with precipitation and closed the door after them. Allen knew the Earl in the person of one of them two of the soldiers quitting Allen pursued the fugitives and quickly disappeared through a door. Allen finding himself alone with a guard seized the moment of opportunity and made a desperate effort to regain his sword. He succeeded and in the suddenness of the attack obtained also the weapon of his adversary who unarmed fell at his feet and called for mercy. Allen gave him his life the soldier grateful for the gift and fearful of the barren's vengeance desired to fly with him and enlist in his service. They quitted the subterraneous way together on entering the cavern Allen found it vacated by his friends who on hearing the clash of armor and the loud and menacing voices of the soldiers understood his fate and apprehensive of numbers had fled to avoid a similar disaster. Allen returned to his tent shocked with disappointment and lost in despair. Every effort which he had made for the deliverance of the Earl had proved unsuccessful and this scheme on which was suspended his last hope had been defeated at the very moment when he exalted in its completion. He threw himself on the ground and lost in bitter thought observed not the curtain of his tent undraw till recalled by a sudden noise he looked up and beheld the Earl terror fixed him to the spot and for a moment he involuntarily acknowledged the traditionary visions of the nation the well known voice of Osbert however awakened him to truth and the ardor with which he embraced his knees immediately convinced him that he classed reality. The soldiers in the eagerness of pursuit had mistaken the door by which Osbert had retired and had entered one below it which after engaging them in a fruitless search through various intricate passages had conducted them to a remote part of the castle from whence after much perplexity and loss of time they were at length extricated. The Earl who had retreated on site of the soldiers had fled in the meantime to regain the trapdoor but the united strength himself and of Edmund was in vain exerted to open it compelled to encounter the approaching evil the Earl took the sword of his companion resolving to meet the approach of his adversaries and to effect his deliverance or yield his life and his misfortunes to become silent. With this design he advanced deliberately along the passage and arriving at the door stopped to discover the motions of his pursuers all was profoundly silent. After remaining some time in this situation he opened the door and examining the avenue with a firm yet anxious eye as far as the light of his taper through its beams discovered no human being. He proceeded with cautious firmness towards the cavern every instant expecting the soldiers to start suddenly upon him from some dark recess. With astonishment he reached the cave without interruption and unable to account for his unexpected deliverance hastened with Edmund to join his faithful people. The soldiers who watched the prison being ignorant of any other way by which the Earl could escape then the door which they guarded had suffered Edmund to enter the apartment without fear. It was some time before they were surprised at the length of his stay they opened the door of the prison which to their utter astonishment they found empty. The greats were examined they remained as usual every corner was explored but the false panel remained unknown and having finished their examination without discovering any visible means by which the Earl had quitted the prison they were seized with terror concluding it to be the work of a supernatural power and immediately alarmed the Baron roused by the tumult was informed of the fact and dubious of the integrity of his guards ascended to the apartment which having himself examined without discovering any means of escape he no longer hesitated to pronounce the sentinel's accessory to the Earl's enlargement. The unfamed terror which they exhibited was mistaken for artifice and their supposed treachery was admitted and punished in the same moment they were thrown into the dungeon of the castle. Soldiers were immediately dispatched in pursuit but the time which had elapsed ere the guards had entered the prison had given the Earl an opportunity of escape when the certainty of this was communicated to the Baron every passion whose single forces misery united in his breast to torture him and his brain exasperated almost to madness gave him only direful images of revenge the Baroness and Lara and the tumult had been filled with apprehension for the Earl till they were informed of the cause of the general confusion and hope and dubious joy were ere long confirmed into certainty for they were told of the fruitless search of the pursuers it was now the last day of the term in which the Countess had stipulated to return her answer she had yet heard nothing from Alan for Alan had been busyed in schemes of the event of which he had been yet undetermined every hope of the Earl's deliverance was now expired and in the anguish of her heart the Countess prepared to give that answer which would send the devoted Mary to the arms of the murderer Mary, who assumed afforditude not her own strobe to abate the rigor of her mother's sufferings but vainly strove they were of a nature which defied consolation she wrote the fatal agreement but delayed to the last delivering it into the hands of the messenger it was necessary however that the Baron should receive it on the following mourn lest the impatience of revenge should urge him to seize on the life of the Earl as the forfeiture of delay she sent therefore for the messenger who was a veteran of the clan and with extreme agitation delivered to him her answer grief interrupted her voice she was unable to speak to him and he was awaiting her orders the door of the apartment was thrown open and the Earl, followed by Allen threw himself at her feet a faint scream was uttered by the Countess and she sunk in her chair Mary, not daring to trust herself with the delightful vision endeavors to restrain the tide of joy which hurried to her heart and threatened to overwhelm her the castle of Othlin resounded with tumultuous joy on this happy event the courts were filled with those of the clan who had been disabled from attending the field and whom the report of the Earl's return which had circulated with astonishing rapidity had brought thither the hall re-echoed with voices and the people could hardly be restrained from rushing into the presence of their chief to congratulate him on his escape when the first transports of the meeting were subsided the Earl presented Allen to his family as his friend and deliverer whose steady attachment he could never forget and whose zealous service he could never repay the cheek of Mary glowed with pleasure and gratitude at this tribute to the worth of Allen and the smiling approbation of her eyes rewarded him for his noble deeds the Countess received him as the deliverer of both her children and related to Osbert the adventure in the wood the Earl embraced Allen who received the united acknowledgments of the family with unaffected modesty Osbert hesitated not to pronounce the Baron the author of the plot his heart swelled to avenge the repeated injuries of his family and he secretly resolved to challenge the enemy to single combat to renew the siege he considered as a vain project and this challenge though a very inadequate mode of revenge was the only honorable one that remained for him he forebored to mention his design to the Countess well knowing that her tenderness would oppose the measure and throw difficulties in his way which would embarrass without preventing his purpose he mentioned the misfortunes of the Baroness and the loveliness of her daughter and excited the esteem and the commiseration of his hearers the clamors of the people to behold their lord now arose to the apartment of the Countess and he descended into the hall accompanied by Allen to gratify their zeal an universal shout of joy resounded through the walls on his appearance a noble pleasure glowed on the countenance of the Earl at sight of his faithful people and in the delight of that moment his heart bore testimony to the superior advantages of an equitable government the Earl impatient to testify his gratitude introduced Allen to the clan as his friend and deliverer and immediately presented his father with a lot of land where he might end his days in peace and plenty and thanked the Earl for his offered kindness but declined accepting it alleging that he was attached to his old cottage and that he had already sufficient for the comforts of his age on the following morning a messenger was privately dispatched to the Baron with a challenge of the Earl the challenge was couched in terms of haughty indignation and expressed that nothing but the failure of all other means could have urged him to the condescension of meeting the assassin of his father on terms of equal combat happiness was once more restored to Othlin the countess in the unexpected preservation of her children seemed to be alive only to joy the Earl was now four times secure in the bosom of his family and though his impatience to avenge the injuries of those most dear to him and a snatch from the hand of oppression the fair sufferers at Dunbane would not allow him to be tranquil yet he assumed a gaiety unknown to his heart and the days were spent in festivals and joy End of Chapter 8 Chapter 9 of the castles of Othlin and Dunbane this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Lauren Randall The Castles of Othlin and Dunbane by Anne Radcliffe Chapter 9 It was at this period that one stormy evening the countess was sitting with her family in a room the windows of which looked upon the sea the winds burst in sudden squalls over the deep and dashed the foaming waves against the rocks with inconceivable fury the spray notwithstanding the high situation of the castle flew up with violence against the windows the Earl went out upon the terrace beneath to contemplate the storm the moon shone faintly by intervals through broken clouds upon the waters illuminating the white foam which burst around and enlightening the scene sufficiently to render it visible the surges broke on the distant shores in deep resounding murmurs and the solemn pauses between the stormy gusts filled the mind with enthusiastic awe as the Earl stood wrapped in the sublimity of the scene the moon, suddenly emerging from a heavy cloud, showed him at some distance a vessel driven by the fury of the blast towards the coast he presently heard the signals of distress and soon after shrieks of terror and a confused upper or voices were born on the wind he hastened from the terrace to order his people to go out with boats to the assistance of the crew for he doubted not that the vessel was wrecked but the sea ran so high as to make the adventure impracticable the sound of voices ceased and he concluded that the wretched mariners were lost when the screams of distress again struck his ear and again were lost in the tumult of the storm in a moment after the vessel struck upon the rock beneath the castle and universal shriek ensued the Earl with his people hastened to the assistance of the crew the fury of the gust was now abated and the Earl jumping into a boat with Allen and some others rode the ship where they rescued a part of the drowning people they were conducted to the castle and every comfort was liberally administered to them among those whom the Earl had received into his boat was a stranger whose dignified aspect and manners bespoke him to be of rank he had several people belonging to him but they were foreigners and ignorant of the language of the country he thanked his deliverer with a noble frankness that charmed him in the hall they were met by the Countess and her daughter who received the stranger with a warm welcome which compassion for his situation had inspired he was conducted to the supper room where the magnificence of the board exhibited only the usual hospitality of his host the stranger spoke English fluently and displayed in his conversation a manly and vigorous mind acquainted with the sciences and with life and the cast of his observations seemed to characterize the benevolence of his heart the Earl was so much pleased with his guest that he pressed him to remain at his castle till another vessel could be procured his guest equally pleased with the Earl and a stranger to the country accepted the invitation new distress now broke upon the peace of Othlin several days had expired and the messenger who had been sent to Malcolm did not appear it was almost evident that the Baron, disappointed and enraged at the escape of his prisoner and eager for a sacrifice had seized this man as the subject of a paltry revenge the Earl, however, resolved to wait a few days and watch the event the struggles of latent tenderness and assumed indifference banished tranquility from the bosom of Mary and pierced it with many sorrows the friendship and honors bestowed by the Earl on Allen who now resided solely at the castle touched her heart with a sweet pride but, alas these distinctions served only to confirm her admiration of that worth which had already attached her affections and afforded him opportunities of exhibiting in brighter colors the various excellencies of a heart noble and expansive and of a mind whose native elegance millerated and adorned the bold vigor of its flights the langer of melancholy withstanding the efforts of Mary would at intervals steal from beneath the disguise of cheerfulness and diffuse over her beautiful features an expression extremely interesting the stranger was not insensible to its charms and it served to heighten the admiration with which he had first beheld her into something more tender and more powerful the modest dignity with which she delivered her sentiments which breathed the purest delicacy touched his heart and he felt an interest concerning her which he had never before experienced Allen whose heart amid the anxieties and tumults of the past scenes had still sighed to the image of Mary that image which fancy had pictured in all the charms of the original and whose glowing tints were yet softened and rendered more interesting by the shade of melancholy with which absence and a hopeless passion had surrounded them the leisure of peace and the frequent opportunities which were afforded him of beholding the object of his attachment his size redouble and the glooms of sorrow thicken in the presence of Mary a soft sadness clouded his brow he endeavored to assume a cheerfulness foreign to his heart but endeavored in vain Mary perceived the change in his manners and the observation did not contribute to enliven her own the Earl too observed that Allen had lost much of his wanted spirits and bantered him on the change but thought not of his sister Allen wished to quit a place so destructive to his peace as the castle of Othlan he formed repeated resolutions of withdrawing himself from those walls which held him in a sort of fascination and rendered ineffectual every half-formed wish and every weak endeavor when he could no longer behold Mary he would frequently retire to the terrace which was overlooked by the windows of her apartment and spend half the night in traversing with silent mournful steps that spot which afforded him the melancholy pleasure of being near the object of his love Matilda wished to question Allen concerning some circumstances of the late events and for this purpose ordered him one day to attend her in her closet as he passed the outer apartment of the Countess he perceived something lying near the door through which she had gone before and examining it discovered a bracelet to which was attached a miniature of Mary his heart beat quick at the sight the temptation was too powerful to be resisted he concealed it in his bosom and passed on on quitting the closet he sought with breathless impatience a spot where he might contemplate at leisure that precious portrait which Chance had so kindly thrown in his way he drew it trembling from his bosom and beheld again that countenance whose sweet expression had touched his heart with all the delightful agonies of love as he pressed it with impassioned tenderness to his lips the tear of rapture trembled in his eye and the romantic ardor of the moment was scarcely heightened by the actual presence of the beloved object whose light step now stole upon his ear and half turning he beheld not the picture but the reality surprised confused the picture fell from his hand Mary who had accidentally strolled to that spot on observing the agitation of Alan was retiring when he in whose heart had been awakened every tender sensation losing in the temptation of the moment the fear of disdain and forgetting the resolution which he had formed of eternal silence Alan had left her feet and pressed her hand to his trembling lips his tongue would have told her that he loved but his emotion and the repulsive look of Mary prevented him she instantly disengaged herself with an air of offended dignity and casting on him a look of mingled anger and concern withdrew in silence Alan remained fixed to the spot his eyes pursuing her retiring steps insensible to every feeling but those of love and despair so absorbed was he in the transition of the moment that he almost doubted whether a visionary illusion had not crossed his sight to blast his only remaining comfort the consciousness of deserving and of possessing the esteem of her he loved he left the place with anguish in his heart and in the perturbation of his mind forgot the picture Mary had observed her mother's bracelet fall from his hand longer in perplexity concerning her miniature but in the confusion which his behavior occasioned her she forgot to demand it of him the Countess had missed it almost immediately after his departure from the closet and had caused a search to be made which proving fruitless her suspicions wavered upon him the Earl who soon after passed the spot whence Alan had just departed found the miniature it was not long ere Alan recollected the treasure he had dropped and returned in search of it instead of the picture he found the Earl a conscious blush crossed his cheek the confusion of his Countess informed Osbert of a part of the truth who anxious to know by what means he had obtained it presented him the picture and demanded if he knew it the soul of Alan knew not to disemble he acknowledged that he had found and concealed it prompted by that passion the confession of which no other circumstance than the present could have rung from his heart the Earl listened to him with a mixture of concern and pity but hereditary pride chilled the warm feelings of friendship and of gratitude and extinguished the faint spark of hope which the discovery had kindled in the bosom of Alan fear not my lord said he the degradation of your house from one who would sacrifice his life in its defense never more shall the passion which glows in my heart escape from my lips I will retire from the spot where I have buried my tranquility no replied the Earl you shall remain here I can confide in your honor oh that the only reward which is adequate to your worth and to your services it should be impossible for me to bestow his voice faltered and he turned away to conceal his emotion with a suffering little inferior to that of Alan the discovery which Mary had made had not contributed to restore peace to her mind every circumstance conspired to assure her of that ardent passion which filled the bosom of him who all her endeavors could not teach her to forget and this conviction served only to heighten her malady and consequently her wretchedness the interest which the stranger discovered and the attention he paid to Mary had not passed unobserved by Alan love pointed to him the passion rising in his heart and whispered that the vows of his rival would be propitious the words of Osbert confirmed him in the torturing apprehension for though his humble birth had never suffered him to hope yet he thought he discovered in the speech of the Earl something more than mere hereditary pride the stranger had contemplated the lovely form of Mary with increasing admiration since the first hour he beheld her this admiration was now confirmed into love and he resolved to acquaint the Earl with his birth and with his passion for this purpose he one morning drew him aside to the terrace of the castle where they could converse without interruption and pointing to the ocean over which he had so lately been born thanked the Earl who had thus softened the horrors of shipwreck and the desolation of a foreign land by the kindness of his hospitality he informed him that he was a native of Switzerland where he possessed considerable estates from which he bore the title of Count de Sant Morin that inquiry of much moment to his interests had brought him to Scotland to a neighboring port of which he was bound when the disaster from which he had been so happily rescued arrested the progress of his designs he then related to the Earl that his voyage was undertaken upon a report of the death of some relations which was to be customized considerable estates in Switzerland became his inheritance that the income of these estates had been hitherto received upon the authority of powers which if the report was true were become invalid the Earl listened to this narrative in silent astonishment and inquired with much emotion the name of the Count's relations the Baroness Malcolm returned he the Count surprised at his agitation began to fear that the Earl was disagreeably interested in the welfare of his adversaries and regretted that he had disclosed the affair till he observed the pleasure which was diffused through his features Osbert explained the cause of his emotion by relating his knowledge of the Baroness in the progress of whose story the character of Malcolm was sufficiently elucidated he told the cause of his hatred of the Baron and the history of his imprisonment and also confided to his honor the secret of his challenge the indignation of the Count was strongly excited he was however prevailed on by Osbert to forego any immediate effort of revenge awaiting for a while the movements of Malcolm the Count was so absorbed in wonder and in new sensations that he had almost forgot the chief object of the interview Osbert covered his passion and requested permission of the Earl to throw himself at the feet of Mary the Earl listened to the declaration with a mixture of pleasure and concern the remembrance of Alan saddened his mind but the wish of an equal connection made him welcome the offers of the Count whose alliance he told him would do honor to the first nobility of his nation if he found the sentiments of his sister in sympathy with his own on this point he welcomed him to his family with the affection of a brother but he wished to discover the situation of her heart ere his noble friend disclosed to her his prepossession the Earl on his return to the castle inquired for Mary whom he found in the apartment of her mother he opened to them the history of the Count his relationship with the Baroness Malcolm with the object of his expedition and closed the narrative with discovering the attachment and his offers of alliance with his family Mary grew pale at this declaration there was a pang in her heart which would not suffer her to speak she threw her eyes on the ground and burst into tears the Earl took her hand tenderly in his my beloved sister said he knows me too well to doubt my affection or to suppose I can wish to influence her upon a subject so material to her future happiness and where her heart ought to be the principal directress do me the justice to believe that I make known to you the offers of the Count as a friend not as a director he is a man whom from the short period of our acquaintance I have judged to be deserving of particular esteem his mind appears to be noble his heart expansive his rank is equal with your own and he loves you with an attachment warm and sincere advantages I would not have my sister give herself to the man who does not meet an interest in her heart to plead his cause the gentle soul of Mary swelled with gratitude towards her brother she would have thanked him for the tenderness of these sentiments but a variety of emotions were struggling at her heart and suppressed her utterance tears and a smile softly clouded with sorrow or all she could give him in reply he could not but perceive some secret cause of grief prayed upon her mind and he solicited to know and to remove it my dear brother will believe the gratitude which his kindness she would have finished the sentence but the words died away upon her lips and she threw herself on the bosom of her mother endeavoring to conceal her distress and wept in silence the Countess too well understood the grief of her daughter as the secret struggles of her heart which all her endeavors were not able to overcome and which rendered the offers of the Count disgusting and dreadful to her imagination Matilda knew how to feel for her sufferings but the affection of the mother extended her views beyond the present temporary evil to the future welfare of her child and in the long perspective of succeeding years she beheld her united to the Count whose character diffused happiness and the mild dignity of virtue to all around him she received the thanks of Mary for her gentle guidance to the good she possessed the artless looks of the little ones around her smiled their thanks and the luxury of that scene recalled the memory of times forever past and mingled with the tear of rapture the sigh of fond regret the surest method of erasing that impression which threatened serious evil to the peace of her child her desire to continue and to secure her permanent felicity was to unite her to the Count whose amiable disposition would soon win her affections and obliterate from her heart every improper remembrance of Allen she determined therefore to employ argument and gentle persuasion to guide her to her purpose she knew the mind of Mary to be delicate and candid easy of conviction and she did not despair of succeeding the Earl still pressed to know the cause of that emotion which afflicted her I am unworthy of your solicitude said Mary I cannot teach my heart to submit to submit can you suppose your friends can wish your heart to submit on a point so material to its happiness to ought that it's repugnant to its feelings if the offers of the Count are displeasing to you tell me so and I will return him his answer believe that my first wish is to see you happy generous Osbert how can I repay the goodness of such a brother I would accept in gratitude the hand of the Count did not my feelings assure me I should be miserable I admire his character and esteem his goodness but alas why should I conceal it from you my heart is another's is another's whose noble deeds have won its involuntary regards and who is yet unconscious of my distinction one who shall forever remain in ignorance of it the idea of Alan flashed into the mind of the Earl and he no longer doubted to whom her heart was engaged my own sentiments said he sufficiently informed me of the object of your admiration you do well to remember the dignity of your sex and of your rank though I must lament with you that worth like Alan's is not empowered by the fortune to take it standard with nobility at Alan's name the blushes of Mary confirmed Osbert in his discovery my child said the Countess will not resign her tranquility to a vain and ignoble attachment she may esteem merit wherever it is found but she will remember the duty which she owes to her family and to herself in contracting an alliance which is to support or diminish the ancient consequence of her house the offers of a man endowed with so much apparent excellence as the Count and whose birth is equal to your own affords a prospect to promising a felicity to be hastily rejected we will hear after converse more largely on this subject never shall you have a reason to blush for your daughter said Mary with a modest pride but pardon me madam if I intrigue that we no more renew a subject so painful to my feelings and which cannot be productive of good for never will I give my hand where my heart does not accompany it this was not a time to press the topic the Countess for the present desisted and the Earl left the apartment with a heart divided between pity and disappointment hope however whispered to his wishes that Mary might in time be induced to admit the addresses of the Count and he determined not wholly to destroy his hopes End of Chapter 9 Chapter 10 of the Castles of Othlin and Dunbane This is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Lauren Randall The Castles of Othlin and Dunbane by Anne Radcliffe Chapter 10 The Count was walking on the ramparts of the castle involved in thought when Osbert approached whose lingering step and disappointed air spoke to his heart the rejection of his suit he told the Count that Mary did not at present feel for him those sentiments of affection which would justify her in accepting his proposals this information though it shocked the hopes of the Count did not entirely destroy them for he yet believed that time and aciduity might befriend his wishes while these noblemen were leaning on the walls of the castle engaged in earnest conversation they observed on a distant hill a cloud emerging from the verge of the horizon whose dusky hue glittered with sudden light in an instant they described the glance of arms and a troop of armed men poured in long succession over the hill and hurried down its side to the plains below the Earl thought he recognized the clan of the Baron it was the Baron himself who now advanced at the head of his people in search of that revenge which had been hitherto denied him and who determined on conquest had brought with him and host which he thought more than sufficient to overwhelm the castle of his enemy the messenger who had been sent with the challenge had been detained a prisoner by Malcolm who in the meantime had hastened preparations to surprise the castle of Othlan the detention of his servant had awakened the suspicions of the Earl and he had taken precautions to guard against the designs of his enemy he had summoned his clan to hold themselves in readiness for a sudden attack and had prepared his castle for the worst emergency he now sent a messenger to the clan with such orders as he judged expedient arranged his plans within the walls to observe the movements of his enemy the count clad in arms stood by his side Alon was posted with a party within the great gate of the castle the Baron advanced with his people and quickly surrounded the walls within all was silent the castle seemed to repose in security and the Baron, certain of victory congratulated himself on the success of the enterprise when observing the Earl in armor he called to him to surrender himself and his chief to the arms of Malcolm the Earl answered the summons with an arrow from his bow which missing the Baron pierced one of his attendants the archers who had been planted behind the walls now discovered themselves and discharged a shower of arrows at the same time every part of the castle appeared thronged with the soldiers of the Earl who hurled on the heads of the astonished Lancis and other missile weapons with unceasing rapidity the alarm bell now rung out the signal to that part of the clan without the walls and they immediately poured upon the enemy who confounded by this unexpected attack had scarcely time to defend themselves the clang of arms resounded through the air with the shouts of the victors and the groans of the dying the fear of the Baron which had principally operated on the minds of the Earl was now overcome by surprise and the fear of death and on the first repulse they deserted from the ranks in great numbers and fled to the distant hills in vain the Baron endeavored to rally his soldiers and keep them to the charge they yielded to a stronger impulse in the menace of their chief who was now left with less than half his number at the foot of the walls the Baron to whom cowardice was unknown disdaining to retreat continued the attack at length the gates of the castle were thrown open and a party issued upon the assailants headed by the Earl and the Count who divided in quest of Malcolm the Count fought in vain and the search of Osbert was equally fruitless their adversary was nowhere to be found Osbert apprehensive of his gaining admittance to the castle by stratagem was returning in haste to the gates when he received the stroke upon his shoulder his armour had broke the force of the blow and the wound it had given was slight he turned his sword and facing his enemy discovered a soldier of Malcolm's who attacked him with a desperate courage the encounter was furious and long dexterity and equal valor seemed to animate both the combatants Alan who observed from his post the danger of the Earl flew instantly to his assistance but the crisis of the scene where he arrived the weapon of Osbert had pierced the side of his adversary and he fell to the ground the Earl disarmed him and holding over him his sword bade him ask his life I have no life to ask said Malcolm whose fainting voice the Earl now discovered if I had his death only I would accept from you O cursed he would have finished the sentence and painted with loss of blood the Earl threw down his sword and calling a party of his people he committed to them the care of the Baron and ordered them to proceed and seize the castle of Dunbane understanding their chief was mortally wounded the remains of Malcolm's army had fled from the walls the people of the Earl proceeded without interruption and took possession of the castle without opposition the wounds of the Baron were examined when he reached Dunbane his sentence of the event was pronounced his countenance marked the powerful workings of his mind which seemed laboring with an unknown evil he threw his eyes eagerly round the apartment as if in search of some object which was not present after several attempts to speak flatter me not said he with hopes of life it is flitting fast away but while I have breath to speak let me see the Baroness she came and hanging over his couch in silent horror received his words I have injured you madam I fear beyond reparation in these last few moments let me endeavor to relieve my conscience by discovering to you my guilt and my remorse the Baroness started fearful of the coming sentence you had a son what of my son you had a son who my boundless ambition doomed to exile his parents and his heritage and who I caused you to believe died in your absence where is my child exclaimed the Baroness I know not resumed Malcolm I committed him to the care of a man and woman who then lived on a remote part of my lands but a few years after they disappeared and I have never heard of them since the boy passed for a foundling whom I had saved from perishing one servant only I entrusted with a secret the rest were imposed upon thus far I tell you madam to prompt you to inquiry and to assuage the agonies of a bleeding conscience I have other deeds the Baroness could hear no more she was carried insensible from the apartment Laura shocked at her condition was informed of its cause and filial tenderness watched over her with unwearyed attention in the meantime the Earl on quitting Malcolm had returned immediately to the castle and was the first messenger of that event which would probably avenge the memory of his father and terminate the distresses of his family the sight of Osbert and the news he brought revived the Countess and Mary who had retired during the assault into an inner apartment of the castle for greater security and who had suffered during that period all the terrors which their situation would inspire they were soon after joined by the Count and by Allen whose conduct did not pass unnoticed by the Earl the cheek of Mary glowed at the relation of this new instance of his worth and it was Allen's sweet reward to observe her emotion there was a sentiment in the heart of Osbert which struggled against the pride of birth he wished to reward the services and the noble spirit of the youth with the virtues of Mary but the authority of early prejudice silenced the grateful impulse and swept from his heart the characters of truth the Earl accompanied by the Count now hastened to the castle of Dunbane to cheer the Baroness and her daughter with their presence as they approached the castle the stillness and desolation of the scene bespoke the situation of its lord his people were entirely dispersed a few only of his sentinels wandered before the eastern gate who having made no opposition were suffered by the Earl's people to remain few of the Baron's people were to be seen those few were unarmed and appeared the effigies of fallen greatness as the Earl crossed the platform the remembrance of the past crowded upon his mind the agonies which he had there suffered the image of death which glared upon his sight aggravated by the bitter and ignominious circumstances which attended his fate the figure of Malcolm mighty in injustice and cruel in power whose countenance smiling horribly in triumphant revenge sent to his heart the stroke of anguish each circumstance of torture arose to his imagination in the glowing colors of truth he shuttered as he passed and the contrast of the present scene touched his heart with the most effecting sentiments he saw the innate and active power of justice and circumstances even of this life like vital principle and shines through the obscurity of human actions to the virtuous the pure ray of heaven to the guilty the destructive glare of lightning on inquiring for the Baroness they were told she was in the apartment of Malcolm whose moment of disillusion was now approaching the name of the count was delivered to the Baroness and overheard by the Baron who desired to see him receive her noble relation with all the joy which a meeting so desirable and so unlooked for could inspire on seeing Osbert her tears flowed fast and she thanked him for his generous care in a manner that declared a deep sense of his services leaving him she conducted the count to Malcolm who lay on his couch surrounded with the stillness and horrors of death he raised his languid head and discovered a countenance wild and terrific whose ghastly aspect was overspread with the paleness of death the beautyous Laura overcome by the scene hung like a drooping lily over his couch dropping fast her tears my lord said Malcolm in a low tone you see before you a wretch anxious to relieve the agony of a guilty mind my vices have destroyed the peace of this lady have robbed her of a son but she will disclose to you a secret guilt which I have now no time to tell I have for some years received as you now well know the income of those foreign lands which are her due as a small reparation for the injuries she has sustained I bequeath to her all the possessions which I lawfully inherit and resign her into your protection to ask oblivion of the past of you madam and of you my lord is what I dare not do some consolation to my departing spirit to be assured of your forgiveness the baroness was too much affected to reply but by a look of ascent the count assured him of forgiveness and besought him to compose his mind for his approaching fate composure my lord is not for me my life has been marked with vice and my death with the bitterness of fruitless remorse I have understood virtue but I have loved vice no lament that I am punished but that I have deserved punishment the baron's sunk on his couch and in a few moments after expired in a strong sigh thus terminated the life of a man whose understanding might have reached the happiness of virtue but whose actions displayed the features of vice from this melancholy scene the baroness with the count and Lara retired to her apartment where the Earl awaited their return with anxious solicitude the sternness of justice for a moment relaxed when he heard of Malcolm's death his heart would have sighed with compassion had not the remembrance of his father crossed his mind and checked the impulse I can now madam said he addressing the baroness restore you a part of those possessions which were once your lords and which ought to have been the inheritance of your son from henceforth is yours I resign it to its lawful owner the baroness was overcome with the remembrance of his services and could scarcely thank him but with her tears the servant whom the baron had mentioned as the confidant of his iniquities was sent for and interrogated concerning the infant he had charged of from him however little comfort was received for he could only tell that he had conveyed the child by the orders of his master to a cottage on the furthest borders of his estates where he had delivered it to the care of a woman who there lived with her husband these people received at the same time a sum of money for its support with a promise of future supplies for some years he had been punctual in the payment of the sums entrusted to him by the baron but at length he yielded to the temptation of withholding them for his own use and on inquiring for the people some years later he found they were gone from the place the conditions of the baroness is pardoned to the man dependent on his endeavours to repair the injury he had promoted by a strict search for the people to whom he had committed her child she now consulted with her friends on the best means to be pursued in this business and immediately sent off messengers to different parts of the country to gather information the baroness was now released from oppression and imprisonment she was reinstated in her ancient possessions to which were added all the hereditary lands of malcom together with his personal fortune she was surrounded by those whom she most loved and in the midst of a people who loved her yet the consequence of the baron's guilt had left in her heart one drop of gall which embittered each source of happiness and made her life melancholy and painful the count was now her visitor she was much consoled by his presence and Laura's hours were often enlivened by the conversation of the Earl to whom her heart was tenderly attached and whose frequent visits to the castle were devoted to love and her the felicity of Matilda now appeared as perfect and as permanent as is consistent with the nature of sublunary things justice was done to the memory of her lord and her beloved son who spared to bless the evening of her days the father of Laura had ever been friendly to the house of Offlin and her delicacy felt no repugnance to the union which Osbert solicited but her happiness whatever it might appear was incomplete she saw the settled melancholy of Mary for love still corroded her heart and notwithstanding her efforts shaded her countenance the countess wished to produce those nuptials with the count which she thought would reestablish the peace of her child and ensure her future felicity she admitted no opportunity of pressing his suit which she managed with a delicacy that rendered it less painful to Mary whose words however were few in reply and who could seldom bear that the subject should ever be long continued her settled aversion to the addresses of the count at length baffled the expectations of Matilda and showed her the fallacy of her efforts she thought it improper to suffer the count any longer to nourish in his heart a vain hope and she reluctantly commissioned the Earl to un-deceive him on this point with the Baroness month after month still elapsed in fruitless search of her son the people with whom he had been placed were nowhere to be found and no track was discovered which might lead to the truth the distress of the Baroness can only be imagined she resigned herself in calm despair to mourn in silence the easy confidence which had entrusted her child to the care of those who had betrayed him though happiness was denied her she was unwilling to withhold it from those whom it awaited and at length yielded to the entreaties of the Earl and became its advocate with Laura for the nuptials which were to unite their fate the Earl introduced the Countess and Mary to the castle of Dunbane similarity of sentiment and disposition united Matilda and the Baroness in a lasting friendship Mary and Laura were not less pleased with each other the dejection of the Count at sight of Mary declared the ardor of his passion and would have awakened in her breast something more than compassion had not her heart been preoccupied Alan who could think of Mary only wandered through the castle of Othlin a solitary being who fondly haunts the spot where his happiness lies buried his prudence formed resolutions which his passion as quickly broke and cheated by love though followed by despair he delayed his departure from day to day and the illusion of yesterday continued to be the illusion of the morrow the Earl attached to his virtues and grateful for his services would have bestowed on him every honour but that alone which could give him happiness and which his pride would have suffered him to accept yet the honours which he refused he refused with the grace so modest as to conciliate kindness rather than wound generosity in a gallery on the north side of the castle which was filled with pictures of the family hung a portrait of Mary she was drawn in the dress which she wore on the day of the festival when she was led by the Earl into the hall and presented as the partner of Alan the lightness was striking and expressive of all the winning grace of the original as often as Alan could steal from observation he retired to this gallery to contemplate the portrait of her who was ever present to his imagination here he could breathe that sigh which her presence restrained and shed those tears which her presence forbade to flow as he stood one day in this place wrapped in melancholy musing his ear was struck with the notes of sweet music they seemed to issue from the bottom of the gallery the instrument was touched with an exquisite expression and in a voice whose tones floated on the air in soft undulations he distinguished the following words which he remembered to be an ode composed by the Earl and presented to Mary who had said it to music the day before morning darkness through thy chilling glooms weakly trembles twilight gray twilight fades and morning comes and melts thy shadows swift away she comes in her ethereal car involved in many a varying hue and throw the azure shoots afar spirit light and life anew her breath revives the drooping flowers her ray dissolves the dews of night recalls the sprightly moving hours and the green scene unveils in light hers the fresh gale that wanders wild o'er mountaintop and dewy glade and fondly steals the breath beguiled of every flower in every shade mother of roses bright aurora hail thee shall the chorus of the hours salute and song of early birds from every veil and blightsome horn and fragrant zephyr mute and oft as rising o'er the plain thou and thy rosy at nymphs appear this simple song in choral strain from rapturing bards shall meet thine ear chorus dance ye lightly lightly on tis the bold lark through the air hails your beauties with his song lightly lightly fleeting fair entranced in the sweet sounds he had proceeded some steps down the gallery when the music ceased he stopped after a short pause it returned and as he advanced he distinguished these words sung in a low voice mournfully sweet in solitude I mourn thy rain ah youth beloved but loved in vain the voice was broken and lost in sobs the chords of the lute were wildly struck and in a few moments silence ensued he stepped on towards the spot whence the sounds had proceeded and through a door which was left open he discovered Mary hanging over her lute dissolved in tears he stood for some moments absorbed in mute admiration and unobserved by Mary who was lost in her tears till a sigh which escaped him recalled her to reality she raised her eyes and beheld the object of her secret sorrows she arose in confusion the blush on her cheek betrayed her heart she was retiring in haste from Alan who remained at the entrance of the room the statue of despair when she was intercepted by the Earl who entered by the door she was opening her eyes were red with weeping he glanced on her a look of surprise and displeasure and passed on to the gallery followed by Alan who was now awakened from his trance from you Alan said the Earl in a tone of displeasure I expected other conduct on your word I relied and your word has deceived me hear me my lord returned the youth your confidence I have never abused hear me I have now no time for parlay replied Osbert my moments are precious some future hour of leisure may suffice so saying he walked away with an abrupt haughtiness which touched the soul of Alan who disdained to pursue him with further explanation he was now completely wretched the same accident which had unveiled to him the heart of Mary and the full extent of that happiness which fate withheld confirmed him in despair the same accident had exposed the delicacy of her he loved to a cruel shock and has subjected his honor to suspicion and to a severe rebuke from him by whom it was his pride to be respected and for whose safety he had suffered imprisonment and encountered death Mary had quitted the closet distressed and perplexed she perceived the mistake of the earl and it shocked her she wished to undeceive him but he was gone to the castle of Dunbane to pay one of those visits which were soon to conclude in the nuptials and whence he did not return till evening the scene which he had witnessed in the morning involved him in tumult of distress he considered the mutual passion which filled the bosom of his sister he had surprised them in the solitary apartment he had observed the tender and melancholy air of Allen and the tears and confusion of Mary and he at first did not hesitate to believe that the interview had been appointed in the heat of his displeasure he had rejected the explanation of Allen with a haughty resentment which the late scene alone could have excited and which the delusion it had occasioned alone could excuse fuller consideration however brought to his mind the delicacy and the amable pride of Mary and the integrity of Allen and he accused himself of a too hasty decision the zealous services of Allen came to his heart he repented that he had treated him so rigorously and on his return inquired for him that he might hear an explanation and that he might soften the asparity of his former behavior End of chapter 10