Francisco Alvarez
had drank of wine that evening, and his blood was warm. He, too, dreamed
a great dream.
"You are a man of discretion and you have helped me. I speak to you as one
devoted to my cause. If you should but breathe what I say to another I
would first swear that it was a lie, and then deliver you to these five
gentlemen, former friends of yours, who would tear you in pieces."
Braxton Wyatt shivered again, and the Spaniard, seeing the shiver, laughed
and was convinced.
"Why should I betray you?" said the renegade. "I have no motive to do so
and every possible motive to keep faith."
"I know it," replied Alvarez, "and that is why I speak. It is to your
interest to be faithful to me and when my enterprise succeeds, as it
certainly will, you shall have your proper share of the reward. Bernardo
Galvez, as you know, is the Governor General of Louisiana, and his father
is the Viceroy of Mexico. They are powerful, very powerful, and I am only
a commander of troops under the son, but I, too, am powerful. My family is
one of the first in Spain. It sits upon the very steps of the throne and
more than once royal blood has entered our veins. I was a favorite at the
court and I have many friends there. The King might be persuaded that
Bernardo Galvez is not a fit representative of the royal interests in
Louisiana.
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