Por Dios ! muttered the sentinel in a low voice; not a bale of goods! It is possible after all, they are not smugglers!
Three men were in the boat, who did not appear to take those precautions which smugglers would have done. They made no particular noise, but, on the other hand, they did not observe any exact silence. Moreover their costume was not that ordinarily worn by the regular contrabandista .
Who the devil can they be? asked Pepé of himself.
The coast-guard lay concealed behind some tufts of withered grass that formed a border along the crest of the slope. Through these he could observe the movements of the three men in the boat.
At an order from the one who sat in the stern sheets, the other two leaped ashore, as if with the design of reconnoitring the ground. He who issued the order, and who appeared to be the chief of the party, remained seated in the boat.
Pepé was for a moment undecided whether he should permit the two to pass him on the road; but the view of the boat, left in charge of a single man, soon fixed his resolution.
He kept his place, therefore, motionless as ever, scarce allowing himself to breathe, until the two men arrived below him, and only a few feet from the spot where he was lying.
Each was armed with a long Catalonian knife, and Pepé could see that the costume which both wore was that of the Spanish privateers of the time a sort of mixture of the uniform of the royal navy of Spain, and that of the merchant service; but he could not see their faces, hid as they were under the slouched Basque bonnet.
All at once the two men halted. A piece of rock, detached by the knees of the coast-guard, had glided down the slope and fallen near their feet.
Did you hear anything? hastily asked one.
No; did
you?
I thought I heard something falling from above there, replied the first speaker; pointing upward to the spot where Pepé was concealed.
Bah! it was some mouse running into its hole.
If this slope wasnt so infernally steep, Id climb up and see, said the first.
I tell you we have nothing to fear, rejoined the second; the night is as black as a pot of pitch, and besides the other , hasnt he assured us that he will answer for the man on guard, who sleeps all day long ?
Just for that reason he may not sleep at night. Remain here, Ill go round and climb up. Carramba ! if I find this sleepy-head, he added, holding out his long knife, the blade of which glittered through the darkness, so much the worse or, perhaps, so much the better for him for I shall send him where he may sleep forever.
Mil diablos ! thought Pepé, this fellow is a philosopher! By the holy virgin I am long enough here.
And at this thought, he crept out of the folds of his cloak like a snake out of his skin, and leaving the garment where it lay, crawled rapidly away from the spot.
Until he had got to a considerable distance, he was so cautious not to make any noise, that, to use a Spanish expression, the very ground itself did not know he was passing over it .
In this way he advanced, carbine in hand, until he was opposite the point where the boat rested against the beach. There he stopped to recover his breath, at the same time fixing his eye upon the individual that was alone.
The latter appeared to be buried in a sombre reverie, motionless as a statue, and wrapped in an ample cloak, which served both to conceal his person and protect him from the humidity of the atmosphere. His eyes were turned toward the sea; and for this reason he did not perceive the dark form of the carabinier approaching in the opposite direction.
The latter advanced with stealthy tread measuring the distance with his eye until at length he stood within a few paces of the boat.
Just then the stranger made a movement as if to turn his face towards the shore, when Pepé, like a tiger hounding upon its prey, launched himself forward to the side of the boat.
It is I! he exclaimed, bringing the muzzle of his carbine on a level with the mans breast. Dont move or you are a dead man!
You, who? asked the astonished stranger, his eyes sparkling with rage, and not even lowering their glance before the threatening attitude of his enemy.
Why me! Pepé you know well enough? Pepé, the Sleeper?
Curses upon him, if he has betrayed me? muttered, the stranger, as if speaking to himself.
If you are speaking of Don Lucas Despierto, interrupted the carabinier, I can assure you he is incapable of such a thing; and if I am here it is because that he has been only too discreet, señor smuggler.
Smuggler! exclaimed the unknown, in a tone of proud disdain.
When I say smuggler, replied Pepé, chuckling at his own perspicuity, it is only meant as a compliment, for you havent an ounce of merchandise in your boat, unless indeed, continued he, pointing with his foot to a rope ladder, rolled up, and lying in the bottom, unless that may be a sample! Santa Virgen ! a strange sample that!
Face to face with the unknown, the coast-guard could now examine him at his leisure.