In less than a minute it was done, the sounds had died away, and nothing was left to tell of what had happened except a little dust and some remains that had been men. Of all those who stood upon the stairway only one survived, Don Pedro, who had run forward in the hope of escaping the fall of the arch. As it chanced he was too late, for though the mass had missed him, a single stone struck him across the middle, breaking his bones and sweeping him to the foot of the first flight, but leaving him alive.
When all was finished, and the dust had fallen to the earth again, the señor spoke, saying, "Let us go and search for the body of our deliverer."
So we went, the three of us, leaving Zibalbay in the temple, but we could not find it; doubtless to this day Molas lies buried beneath some of the larger blocks of masonry. There were other bodies indeed, from which we did not scruple to take the rifles and whatever else was likely to be of value to us. Better still, tied among some trees near the foot of the pyramid, we found four good mules, one of them laden with ammunition and provisions, for Don Pedro had come out determined to hunt us down, even if he must follow us for days.
Having picketed the mules where they could graze, we returned to the temple, bearing with us food and drink, of which we stood in sore need. On our way up the steps, Don Pedro called to us from where he lay broken and bleeding against an uprooted tree.
"Water," he cried, "give me water."
The señor gave him some mixed with brandy that we had found upon the sumpter mule.
"Your heart is merciful," said Maya gravely; "I am not cruel, yet I think that I should suffer that dog to die untended."
"We all of us have sins to pay for, Lady, and the thought of them should teach us charity, especially now when it has pleased God to spare us," answered the señor.
"I am dying," moaned the wretch; "my presentiment has come true, and death finds me amongst ruins. How dare I die who have been a murderer and a thief from my boyhood?"
The señor shrugged his shoulders, for he could not answer this question.
"Give me absolution," he went on, "for the love of Christ, give me absolution."
"I cannot," said the señor; "I have no authority. Pray to Heaven to shrive you, for your time is short."
Then he turned and went, but for a long time we were troubled by the last cries and blasphemies of this most evil man; indeed they did not cease till sunset, when the devil came to claim his own.
Chapter XI
Zibalbay Tells His Mission
When we reached the ruins of the temple we ate and drank, then, knowing that we could travel no farther that night, I spoke, saying:
"Some two months since, Zibalbay, you sent a message to Molas, my foster–brother, that man who died to save us this day, to him who among the Indians is known as Lord of the Heart. Your messenger travelled fast and far, by sea and by land, till he found him and delivered the message."
"To whom did he deliver it?" asked Zibalbay.
"To me, for I am the man you seek, and with my companion I have journeyed here to find you, suffering many dangers and evils on the path."
"Prove that you are the man"—and he asked me certain, secret questions, to all of which I returned answers.
"You are instructed," he said at length, "yet something is lacking; if, indeed, you are the Lord of the Heart, reveal its mystery to my eyes."
"Nay," I answered, "it is you who seek me, not I you. To Molas, your messenger, you showed a certain symbol; let me see that symbol, for then and not till then will I reveal the mystery."
Now he looked round him doubtfully, and said, "You I have proved, and this woman is my daughter and knows all; but what of the white man? Is it lawful that I should unveil the Heart before him?"
"It is lawful," I answered, "for this white man is my brother, and we are one till death. Also he is sworn of our brotherhood, and himself, for a while, was Lord and Holder of the Heart, for I passed it on to him when I thought that I lay dying, and to him cling its virtues and prerogatives. So it comes about that we have no secrets from each other; that his ears are my ears, and his mouth is my mouth. Speak to us, then, as though we were one man, or be silent to both, for I vouch for him and he for me."
"Are these things so, White Man?" asked Zibalbay, making the sign of the brotherhood.
"They are so," replied the señor, giving the countersign.
"Then I speak," said Zibalbay, "I speak in the name of the Heart, and woe be to him who betrays the secrets that he learns under cover of this name. Come hither, daughter, and give me that which is hidden about you."
Now Maya put her hands to her head, and drawing forth something from the dense masses of her hair, she passed it to her father.
"Is this what you would see?" he asked, holding the talisman in the light of the setting sun.
I looked, and lo! there before me was the very counterpart of that which had descended to me from my forefathers, and which I wore about my neck.
"It would seem so, unless my sight deceives me," I answered; "and is this what you have come so far to seek, Zibalbay?" and I drew forth the ancient symbol of the Broken Heart.
Now he leaned forward, and examined first the one half and then the other, searching them both with his eyes. Then he clasped his hands and, looking to the heavens, said:
"I thank thee, O Nameless One, god of my fathers, that thou hast led my feet aright, and given it to mine eyes to see their desire. As thou hast prospered the beginning, so prosper thou the end, I beseech thee."
Then he turned to me and continued as in an ecstasy:
"Now have Day and Night come together, and soon shall the new sun rise, the sun of our glory, for already the dawn is breaking. Take that which is in your keeping, and I will take that which is in mine, for not here must they be joined, but far away. Listen, brethren, to my tale, which shall be brief, seeing that if it be the will of Heaven, your eyes shall prove my words where all things can be made clear to you, and if not, that of which little is told is the more easily forgotten. Perchance, my brethren, you have heard legends of that ancient undiscovered city, the last home of our race which is undefiled by the foot of the white conqueror, and the secret sanctuary of the pure faith given to our forefathers by the divine Cucumatz, who is of some named Quetzal."
"We have heard of it and greatly desire to see it," I answered.
"If this be so," went on Zibalbay, "in us you have found those who can guide you to that city, of which I am the cacique and hereditary high priest, and my only child here is the heiress and lady. You wonder how it comes then that we, being of this condition, are found unguarded and alone, wandering like beggars in the land of the white man. Listen: The City of the Heart, as it is called, is of all cities the most beautiful and ancient, and once in the far past she ruled these lands from sea to sea, for her walls were built by one of those brethren whom the holy Cucumatz, the white god, left to share his throne, after there had been war between the brethren and they separated, each becoming the father of a nation. So great was her power in the early days that all the cities whose ruins may be found buried in these forests were her tributaries, but as the years went by, hordes of barbarians rolled down upon her frontier towns so that they were lost to her. Still no enemies came near her gates, and she remained the richest and most powerful of the cities of the world.