"Yea; but they first defied the giant openly," said Humfrey.

"What of that?" said Antony.

"They did not do it under trust," said Humfrey.

"I am not under trust," said Antony. "Your father may be a sworn
servant of the Earl and, the Queen--Queen Elizabeth, I mean; but I
have taken no oaths--nobody asked me if I would come here."

"No," said Humfrey, knitting his brows, "but you see we are all
trusted to go in and out as we please, on the understanding that we
do nought that can be unfaithful to the Earl; and I suppose it was
thus with this same Willie Douglas."

"She was his own true and lawful Queen," cried Cis. "His first duty
was to her."

Humfrey sat up and looked perplexed, but with a sudden thought
exclaimed, "No Scots are we, thanks be to Heaven! and what might be
loyalty in him would be rank treason in us."

"How know you that?" said Antony. "I have heard those who say that
our lawful Queen is there," and he pointed towards the walls that
rose in the distance above the woods.

Humfrey rose wrathful. "Then truly you are no better than a traitor,
and a Spaniard, and a Papist," and fists were clenched on both aides,
while Cis flew between, pulling down Humfrey's uplifted hand, and
crying, "No, no; he did not say he thought so, only he had heard it."