“I am the vassal, she is his mistress,
I defend him with sword and knife,
Prepared he may be to besmirch my honor,
But I am here and will save his dear life.”
The archers of the royal guard gazed at him in disbelief, unable to tell whether he was drunk or raving mad.
The captain passed me the mug, and I took a long drink from it before handing it back. The wine warmed me a little and stopped me shivering. I glanced at Guadalmedina, who was standing next to us, cool and elegant, hand nonchalantly on hip. He had arrived just in time to receive his laurels, having read my note when he got out of bed and galloped straight there with twenty archers in tow, only to find that everything had been resolved: the king, unharmed, sitting on a rock underneath a greak oak in a clearing in the forest; Malatesta, lying facedown in the mud with his hands tied behind his back; and us, trying to revive Cózar after he had passed out while grappling with his enemy, who lay pinned beneath him, even more battered and bruised than he was. The archers, however, with no clear idea of what had happened, immediately seized us and held their swords to our throats, and it was only when they were close to killing us—during which time Guadalmedina said not a word in our favor—that the king himself explained. These three gentlemen—those were the king’s exact words—had, very bravely and at great risk to themselves, saved his life. With such a royal commendation, no one troubled us any further, and even Guadalmedina changed his tune. So there we were, encircled by guards and with a mug of wine between us, while His Catholic Majesty was attended to within, and things—whether for better or worse, I cannot say—returned to normal.
Álvaro de la Marca, with a click of his fingers, ordered another mug of wine to be brought, and when the servant placed it in his hands, he raised it in a toast to the captain.
“Here’s to your exploits today, Alatriste,” he said, smiling. “To the king and to you.”
He drank and then held out his gloved hand to shake my master’s hand, either that or to help him to his feet in the hope that he would join him in the toast. The captain, however, remained sitting where he was, not moving, his own mug in his lap, ignoring the proffered hand. He was watching the rain falling on the corpses that lay in a row in the mud.
“Perhaps . . .” Guadalmedina began, then fell silent, and I saw his smile fade on his lips. He glanced at me, and I looked away. He stood for a while, observing us, then, very slowly, he put his mug down on the ground and walked off.
I still said nothing, but sat next to my master, listening to the sound of the rain on the slate roof.
“Captain,” I said at last.
That was all. I knew it was enough. I felt his rough hand on my shoulder, felt him pat me gently on the back of the neck.
“We’re still alive,” he said at last.
I shivered from the cold, and from my own thoughts. I wasn’t thinking only about what had taken place that morning in the woods.
“What will happen to her now?” I asked quietly.
He didn’t look at me.
“Her?”
“To Angélica.”
He said nothing for a while. He was gazing pensively at the path along which Gualterio Malatesta had been carried off on his way to meet his torturer. Then he shook his head and said:
“One can’t always win.”
There came the sound of voices and martial footsteps, the clatter of weapons. The archers, their cuirasses beaded with rain, were mounting their horses as a coach drawn by four grays approached the door. Guadalmedina reappeared, donning an elegant jeweled hat and accompanied by various gentlemen of the royal household. He shot us a perfunctory look and issued orders. More commands were given, horses neighed, and the archers, looking very gallant on their mounts, formed into disciplined ranks. Then the king came out of the lodge. He had exchanged his huntsman’s outfit for a costume of blue brocade and was wearing boots, hat, and carrying a sword. Everyone removed his hat, apart from Guadalmedina, who, as a grandee of Spain, was entitled to keep his on. The king gazed impassively into the distance, looking as remote and aloof as he had during the skirmish in the forest. Head erect, he walked along the porch toward the carriages, passed us without even a glance, and got into the coach that was waiting by the steps. Guadalmedina was about to step in behind him when the king said something in a low voice. We saw Guadalmedina lean toward the king to hear what he was saying, despite the drenching rain. Then he frowned and nodded.
“Alatriste,” he called.
I turned to the captain, who was staring in some confusion at both Guadalmedina and the king. Finally, he went over to them, leaving the shelter of the porch. The king’s blue eyes fixed on him, as cold and watery as the eyes of a fish.
“Give him back his sword,” ordered Guadalmedina, and a sergeant approached with the captain’s sword and belt. It did not, in fact, belong to the captain but to the first ruffian from whom he had plundered it after cutting his throat. My master, apparently more bewildered than ever, stood there, holding the sword. Then he slowly buckled on the belt. When he looked up again, his aquiline profile and bushy mustache—from which the rain was now dripping—gave him the appearance of a wary falcon.
“Turn your fire on me,” said Philip, as if thinking out loud.
I was confused at first, then I remembered that these had been the captain’s words when Malatesta was aiming his pistol at the king. My master was now looking at the king coolly and inquisitively, as if wondering where this would all end.
“Your hat, Guadalmedina,” said His Catholic Majesty.
There was a long silence. At last, Álvaro de la Marca obeyed and rather grumpily did as he was asked—he was getting thoroughly soaked—and handed the captain that lovely hat adorned with a pheasant’s feather and a band sewn with diamonds.
“Put it on, Captain Alatriste,” ordered the king.
For the first time since I had known my master, I saw him utterly dumbfounded. And he remained so for a moment, fidgeting with the hat, uncertain what to do.
“Put it on,” repeated the king.
The captain nodded, as if he had only then understood. He looked at the king, and at Guadalmedina. Then he thoughtfully studied the hat and put it on very slowly, as if giving everyone time to change their mind.
“You will never be able to speak of this in public,” warned the king.
“No, I imagine not,” replied my master.
For a long moment, that obscure swordsman and the Lord of Two Worlds stood eye to eye, and on the latter’s impassive Hapsburg face there appeared just the flicker of a smile.
“I wish you luck, Captain. And if you’re ever condemned to be hanged or garrotted, appeal to the king. From today on, you have the right to be beheaded like an hidalgo and a gentleman.”
Thus spoke Philip II’s grandson on that rainy morning at La Fresneda. Then he gave an order; Guadalmedina got into the coach, raised the footboard, and closed the door. The coachman cracked the whip and the carriage set off, ploughing through the mud, followed by the archers on horseback and Cózar’s cries of “Long live the king!,” for, drunk again, or perhaps pretending to be, the actor kept roaring: “Long live the Catholic king,” “Long live the House of Hapsburg,” “God bless Spain, guardian of the true faith, Spain, and the whore who bore her.”
I went over to the captain, quite overcome. My master was watching as the royal carriage disappeared. Guadalmedina’s elegant hat was in marked contrast to the rest of him, for, like me, he was cut, bruised, beaten, and mud-splattered. When I reached his side, I saw that he was laughing softly to himself. When he saw me, he turned and winked, taking off the hat to show me.