The Rebel Chief: A Tale of Guerilla Life. Gustave Aimard
"Ah! There you are, my good friends," he said, with a pleasant smile, as he offered them his hand; "it is a joyous waking for me, since I find you at my side. Good day! Louise, my girl. Good day! Mother Thérèse; and good day to you, too, my old Loïck! You have cheerful faces, which it is a pleasure to look at!"
"How sorry I am that you woke up, Mr. Oliver," the charming Louise said.
"The more so, because you were doubtless fatigued," Loïck said.
"Stuff! I have forgotten it. You did not expect to find me here, eh?"
"Pardon me, Mr. Oliver," Thérèse replied; "López informed us of your arrival."
"That confounded López cannot hold his tongue," Oliver said, gaily; "he must always be chattering."
"You will breakfast with us, I hope?" the young woman asked.
"Is that a thing to ask, girl?" the vaquero said; "I should like to see Mr. Oliver decline, that is all."
"Come, rough one," Oliver said, laughingly; "do not growl. I will breakfast."
"Ah! That is all right," the young woman exclaimed. And, aided by Thérèse, who was her mother, as Loïck was her father, she instantly began making preparations for the morning meal.
"But, you know," said Oliver, "nothing Mexican, I do not expect the frightful cooking of the country here."
"All right!" Louise answered, with a smile; "We will have a French breakfast."
"Bravo! The news doubles my appetite."
While the two women went backwards and forwards from the kitchen to the dining room, preparing the breakfast, and laying the table, the two men remained near the window, and were conversing together.
"Are you still satisfied?" Oliver asked his host.
"Perfectly," the other answered. "Don Andrés de la Cruz is a good master; besides, as you know, I have but few dealings with him."
"That is true. You only depend on Ño Leo Carral."
"I do not complain of him. He is a worthy man, although a majordomo. We get on famously together."
"All the better. I should have been grieved had it been otherwise. However, it was on my recommendation that you consented to take this rancho; and if there were anything—"
"I would not hesitate to inform you of it, Mr. Oliver; but in that quarter all goes well."
The adventurer looked at him fixedly.
"Then something is going wrong elsewhere?" he remarked.
"I do not say so, sir," the vaquero stammered, with embarrassment.
Oliver shook his head.
"Do you remember, Loïck," he said to him, sternly, "the conditions I imposed on you, when I granted you your pardon?"
"Oh! I do not forget them, sir."
"You have not spoken?"
"No."
"Then Dominique still believes himself—?"
Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.
Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».
Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.
Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.