Читать книгу Superstition Corner онлайн

46 страница из 47

After all, if she was to be a stranger in her own land, she was only sharing her brother's fate. Simon must always be a hunted stranger, so why should she seek a country? She and Simon were the lost boy and girl of the Alards—lost in the wood of a strange faith but with the unchanging firmament above them, the immovable starry sky, pricked with the lights of heaven. She need not fear when she was with Simon; she wanted no black Protestant to pluck her out of the wood and shut her from the stars. Better far be lost with Simon where she could see those set and faithful stars; and perhaps one day she would really hear their music, instead of being earthbound with the music of a lute.

What was it the old mountebank had said? "Simon Alard rides to the Crusades, against the true religion—and his sister rides to meet him." That was strange, though doubtless she would ride to meet him if she knew when he would come.

"They meet under the cross"—that certainly was not true, for the cross was broken down. Heigho! there are no crosses in the land—they are all broken down. The conjurer must have been wandering in his wits . . . and anyway 'tis all superstition.