The Call of the Blood - Page 81/317

The girl smiled at him with sympathy.

"That is my bed," she said, simply. "Lie down and sleep, signorino."

Delarey hesitated for a moment. He thought of his companions. If they

should wake in the cave and miss him what would they think, what would

they do? Then he looked again at the bed. The longing to lie down on it

was irresistible. He pointed to the open door.

"When the sun comes will you wake me?" he said.

He took hold of his arm with one hand, and made the motion of shaking

himself.

"Sole," he said. "Quando c'è il sole."

The girl laughed and nodded.

"Si, signore--non dubiti!"

Delarey climbed up on to the mountainous bed.

"Buona notte, Maddalena!" he said, smiling at her from the pillow like a

boy.

"Buon riposo, signorino!"

That was the last thing he heard. The last thing he saw was the dark,

eager face of the girl lit up by the candle-flame watching him from the

farther room. Her slight figure was framed by the doorway, through which

a faint, sad light was stealing with the soft wind from the sea. Her

lustrous eyes were looking towards him curiously, as if he were something

of a phenomenon, as if she longed to understand his mystery.

Soon, very soon, he saw those eyes no more. He was asleep in the midst of

the Madonnas and the saints, with the blessed palm branch and the

crucifix and Maria Addolorata above his head.

The girl sat down on a chair just outside the door, and began to sing to

herself once more in a low voice: "Divina Pruvidenza, pruvvidìtimi;

Divina Pruvidenza, consulàtimi;

Divina Pruvidenza è granni assai;

Cu' teni fidi a Diù, 'un pirisci mai!"

Once, in his sleep, Delarey must surely have heard her song, for he began

to dream that he was Ulysses sailing across the purple seas along the

shores of an enchanted coast, and that he heard far off the sirens

singing, and saw their shadowy forms sitting among the rocks and

reclining upon the yellow sands. Then he bade his mariners steer the bark

towards the shore. But when he drew near the sirens changed into devout

peasant women, and their alluring songs into prayers uttered to the

Bambino and the Virgin. But one watched him with eyes that gleamed like

black jewels, and her lips smiled while they uttered prayers, as if they

could murmur love words and kiss the lips of men.

"Signorino! Signorino!"