Page 101 of The Secret of Drulea Cottage
“Shh!” Santiago insisted.
“You’re arresting Senhor Mendes? On what grounds?” Tomas didn’t sound nearly as confident anymore, but Santiago was proud of the man for not allowing the quadrilheiros into the house yet.
“Treason! Now, stand aside!” A sudden slam indicated that Tomas had been shoved into the door, and the quadrilheiros’ stomping feet told Santiago they’d forced their way inside.
Andreas gripped his friend’s arm. “Let’s get out of here!”
Santiago frowned. “But I’ve done nothing wrong. Let’s just talk to them. If we run away, that will just make us look guilty.”
The other man shook his head sadly. “You put too much faith in the courts. They want you for treason! Remember what happened to Ferreira and Policarpio? They were tortured! You may be all right with that, but they want your sister too! Do you think she’ll be spared simply because she’s a woman?”
Santiago glanced at his sister, whose face was paler than he’d ever seen, and before he knew it, his protective instincts kicked in. He pointed to the street below—a jump from there would hurt, but it was their best chance of escape. “Andreas, take her to theSão Nicolauand get as far from here as you can. The men are already aboard, so you won’t need to wait for morning—”
“I’m not leaving without you!” Lucia shouted, her voice strong despite her fear. “We’ve already lost our parents. We can’t lose each other now too.”
She stared hard at him until Santiago couldn’t bear to look anymore. He turned away and nodded his assent. “Fine. Let’s get going, then.”
The footsteps were getting closer now. Andreas wasted no time in lunging off the side of the balcony. One loud thump later and he was encouraging Lucia to do the same.
She climbed over the side and looked down. “I can’t do it!”
But then the quadrilheiros were entering the ballroom—it wouldn’t be long before they were spotted!
“Sister, you have to! It’s the only way.” Santiago threw his leg over the side of the balcony and positioned himself next to her.
“Hey! Stop!”
Santiago turned and saw all ten quadrilheiros sprinting toward them.
“On three, Lucia. One. Two.Three!” Santiago leaped, praying his sister would do the same. He rolled to break his fall, but the landing still made his bones ache.
“Lucia? Are you all righ—” Santiago broke off when he spotted Lucia on the ground with Andreas squished beneath her. She’d had a much softer landing than he had. The poor man must have tried to catch her.
Santiago grabbed Lucia and pulled her to her feet. “Come on, you two. There’s no time to lose.”
Andreas, looking a little dazed, accepted Santiago’s hand and also rose to his feet.
“Stop! By order of the king!”
It looked like the quadrilheiros were about to jump down after them, so Santiago ushered Andreas and Lucia toward the docks. He had no idea where they’d go once they boarded theSão Nicolau, but anywhere seemed safer than here.
The lateness of the hour, together with the moonless sky, made it easy for the trio to sneak to theSão Nicolau,completely unnoticed. Santiago boarded the ship with a troubled mind and a heavy heart, reluctant to depart under such dire circumstances.
Fleeing now will lead to disaster, I’m certain of it. I’m all but declaring my own guilt when I don’t even know why I’m being charged.
Santiago stewed over the possible reasons anyone would suspect him of treason.I’ve always been a loyal subject to the crown, and despite my…distaste for the prime minister,[31]I’ve always done my best to uphold the law.
Then he remembered what Andreas had said about the men accused of treason. Santiago knew well whom he had been referring to since everyone in Portugal knew some version of what had happened to Antonio Alvarez Ferreira and Joseph Policarpio. Everyone knew what they had done for the Távora family, and everyone knew it had ultimately cost them everything.
The Távoras had been one of the most powerful noble families in all of Portugal, but that was before the prime minister accused them of treason. Even the children were imprisoned and would have suffered a cruel fate if Her Majesty the Queen hadn’t intervened. Santiago had been astounded to hear of the prime minister’s merciless intentions.Then again, drastic measures were needed. After all, someone had tried to kill the king.
Through word of mouth, Santiago had learned that His Majesty’s life had almost been taken the September before on his way home from a rendezvous with one of his mistresses.
No one should have known where he was, due to the nature of the visit and the fact that he was riding in an unmarked carriage. Yet somehow someone did, and armed men shot at His Majesty and his driver. Some people said two men, while others said three were involved in the attack. The would-be assassins only managed to shoot His Majesty in the arm, and once the king returned to his residence in Ajuda, the prime minister wasted no time in starting an investigation.
Shortly thereafter, Ferreira and Policarpio were found and hanged for attacking His Majesty’s carriage. But rumors slithered from ear to ear that one of the men had only been hanged in effigy, that he’d somehow escaped the night before he was to die.
In the weeks following, the Távora family was arrested, supposedly for being behind the whole affair. The assassins had confessed that they were following the family’s orders, with the goal of putting the Duke of Aveiro on the throne.
