The Greatest Works of Fergus Hume - 22 Mystery Novels in One Edition. Fergus Hume

for the inevitable woman to appear on the scene. And who is Doña Dolores?”

      “She is Maraquando’s ward,” replied Jack, colouring a little.

      “With whom you are in love?”

      “I didn’t say that Philip.”

      “No; but you looked it.”

      Peter chuckled, whereat Duval turned on him crossly.

      “I wish you would stop making such a row, Peter; I can’t hear myself speak.”

      “Well, what about Doña Dolores?” persisted Philip, maliciously.

      “Doña Dolores,” repeated Jack, calmly, “is the woman whom I hope to make my wife.”

      At this startling announcement there was a dead silence.

      “I congratulate you, Jack,” said Cassim, gravely, after a momentary pause. “I hope you will ask us all to your wedding. But what has this story of politics, railways, and love to do with the harlequin opal?”

      “Everything. Listen. Don Hypolito is an ambitious man who wants to become Dictator of Cholacaca, and rule that Republic as Dr. Francia did Paraguay. Now, the easiest way in which he can obtain his desire is by marrying Dolores.”

      “What! Is she the heiress of the Republic?”

      “No; but she is the lawful owner of the Chalchuih Tlatonac.”

      “What, in heaven’s name, is that?”

      “It means ‘the shining precious stone,’ in the Toltec tongue.”

      “The deuce!” murmured Philip, in an amused tone; “we have got past the Aztecs.”

      “I suppose this shining precious stone is the harlequin opal?” said Peter, inquiringly.

      “Precisely. This celebrated stone is hundreds of years old. Tradition says it was the property of Quetzalcoatl.”

      “That’s the Mexican god of the air,” said Philip who knew all sorts of stray facts.

      “Yes. You’ve read that in Prescott.”

      “No, I didn’t. Bancroft is my authority. But how did it come into the possession of your Doña Dolores?”

      “Oh, she is a direct descendant of Montezuma.”

      “An Aztec princess. Jack, you are making a royal match.”

      “I’m afraid there is very little royalty about Dolores,” replied Jack, laughing; “but, as regards this stone. Quetzalcoatl gave it to Huitzilopochtli.”

      “Lord! what names.”

      “When Cortez conquered Mexico, he found the stone adorning the statue of the war god in his famous teocalli in the city of the Aztecs. One of the Spanish adventurers stole it, and afterwards married a daughter of Montezuma. When she found out that he had the opal, she stole it from him, and went off down south, where she delivered it to some native priest in one of those Central American forests.”

      “Where it remains still?”

      “By no means. This woman had a son by the Spaniard, a Mestizo, as they call this mixture of Indian and Spanish blood. He, I believe, claimed the stone as his property whereon the high priest of Huitzilopochtli proposed to sacrifice him. Not being a religious man, he disliked the idea, and ran away, taking the stone with him. He reached the coast, and married a native woman. There they set up a temple on their own account to the god of war, and round it, as time went on, grew a settlement, which was called after the opal ‘Chalchuih Tlatonac.’ Then the Spaniards came and conquered the town, which they rechristened Puebla de Nuestra Señora de la Concepcion; but the name didn’t catch on, and it is now known by its old Indian name of Tlatonac. Of course there are a good many Spaniards there still; descendants of the Conquistadores; but the majority of the population are Indians.”

      “And what became of the opal?”

      “Well, as the Spaniards tried to get hold of it, the Indians took it inland to one of their forest retreats. The descendants of Montezuma, however, are still supposed to be its guardians, and, when one owner dies, the opal is brought secretly to Tlatonac, and shown to the new possessor; then it is taken back to its forest sanctuary.”

      “Where did you see it?” asked Philip, curiously.

      “That’s the whole point of the story,” answered Jack, thoughtfully. “The son of Montezuma’s daughter married a native woman, as I told you; their son, however, married a Spanish lady, and so the race was continued. Off and on, they married Indian and Spaniard. This mixing of race isn’t good, from a philoprogenitive point of view, and Dolores is the last descendant of the original owner of the opal. Therefore, she is its guardian, and that is the reason Don Hypolito wants to marry her.”

      “He wishes to obtain the stone as a wedding dowry?”

      “Yes. This Chalchuih Tlatonac is an object of superstitious veneration to the Indians. They are supposed to be converted; but they all more or less cling to their old beliefs. In one of these mysterious forests stands a temple to Huitzilopochtli, and there a good many of them go in secret to consult the opal. How they consult it I don’t know, unless by its changing colours. Now, if Hypolito marries Dolores, through her he might seize the stone. If he becomes its possessor, he could do what he pleased with the Indian population. As they greatly outnumber the Spanish element, he would use them to raise himself to the Dictatorship of Cholacaca.”

      “Then he doesn’t love the girl?”

      “Not a bit,” replied Jack, viciously; “all he wants is to marry her, and thus gain possession of the devil stone. Besides, apart from the use it would be to him, from a superstitious point of view, he would like to obtain the stone for its own sake. It is a magnificent gem.”

      “Has he seen it also?”

      “Yes; at the same time as I did. Dolores’ father died, and she became the ward of her uncle Don Miguel. I was a good deal about the house, and naturally enough fell in love with her.”

      “Jack! Jack!”

      “You’ll fall in love with her, yourself, Philip, when you see her; she’s an angel.”

      “Of course. You say that because you are in love with her. Does she return your love?”

      “Yes; she is as fond of me as I am of her.”

      “And what does Don Miguel, the proud hidalgo, say?”

      “He says nothing, because he knows nothing,” said Jack, promptly; “we haven’t told him yet. However, when Dolores and myself found out we loved one another, she told me all about this Chalchuih Tlatonac, and how she expected it was to be shown to her, according to custom. A few nights afterwards the priest arrived secretly, and showed her the stone. While she was holding it up, I entered the room suddenly with Don Hypolito. We saw the opal flashing like a rainbow in her hand. By Heaven, boys, I never saw such splendour in my life. We only had a glimpse of it, for as soon as the old priest saw us he snatched it out of her hand and bolted. I followed, but lost him, so the opal went back to the forest temple; and Lord only knows where that is.”

      “Doesn’t Doña Dolores know?”

      “No; nobody knows except the priests. They meet the worshippers on the verge of the forest and blindfold them before leading them to the shrine.”

      “And how did Don Hypolito find out Dolores was the guardian of the opal?” asked Peter, after a pause.

      “Oh, the story is common property. But the opal isn’t of much value to Dolores. She is called its guardian, but has nothing to do with it. Now I suppose she’ll never see it again.”

      “It’s a queer story anyhow,” observed Tim, reflectively; “I would like to see that jewel.”

      “That’s