“Take the ring, take it, my darling,” whispered Theon impatiently; “it will pay all our debts.”
“Ah, that it will—pay them all,” answered the old woman, who seemed to have mysteriously overheard him.
“What!—my father! Would you, too, counsel me to be so mercenary? My good woman,” she went on, turning to Miriam, “I cannot expect you to understand the reason of my refusal. You and I have a different standard of worth. But for the sake of the talisman engraven on that agate, if for no other reason, I cannot give it up.”
“Ah! for the sake of the talisman! That is wise, now! That is noble! Like a philosopher! Oh, I will not say a word more. Let the beautiful prophetess keep the agate, and take the opal too; for see, there is a charm on it also! The name by which Solomon compelled the demons to do his bidding. Look! What might you not do now, if you knew how to use that! To have great glorious angels, with six wings each, bowing at your feet whensoever you called them, and saying, ‘Here am I, mistress; send me.’ Only look at it!”
Hypatia took the tempting bait, and examined it with more curiosity than she would have wished to confess; while the old woman went on—
“But the wise lady knows how to use the black agate, of course? Aben-Ezra told her that, did he not?”
Hypatia blushed somewhat; she was ashamed to confess that Aben-Ezra had not revealed the secret to her, probably not believing that there was any, and that the talisman had been to her only a curious plaything, of which she liked to believe one day that it might possibly have some occult virtue, and the next day to laugh at the notion as unphilosophical and barbaric; so she answered, rather severely, that her secrets were her own property.
“Ah, then! she knows it all—the fortunate lady! And the talisman has told her whether Heraclian has lost or won Rome by this time, and whether she is to be the mother of a new dynasty of Ptolemies, or to die a virgin, which the Four Angels avert! And surely she has had the great demon come to her already, when she rubbed the flat side, has she not?”
“Go, foolish woman! I am not like you, the dupe of childish superstitions.”
“Childish superstitions! Ha! ha! ha!” said the old woman, as she turned to go, with obeisances more lowly than ever. “And she has not seen the Angels yet! … Ah well! perhaps some day, when she wants to know how to use the talisman, the beautiful lady will condescend to let the poor old Jewess show her the way.”
And Miriam disappeared down an alley, and plunged into the thickest shrubberies, while the three dreamers went on their way.
Little thought Hypatia that the moment the old woman had found herself alone, she had dashed herself down on the turf, rolling and biting at the leaves like an infuriated wild beast … “I will have it yet! I will have it, if I tear out her heart with it!”
XVI
Venus and Pallas
As Hypatia was passing across to her lecture-room that afternoon, she was stopped midway by a procession of some twenty Goths and damsels, headed by Pelagia herself, in all her glory of jewels, shawls, and snow-white mule; while by her side rode the Amal, his long legs, like those of Gang-Rolf the Norseman, all but touching the ground, as he crushed down with his weight a delicate little barb, the best substitute to be found in Alexandria for the huge black chargers of his native land.
On they came, followed by a wondering and admiring mob, straight to the door of the Museum, and stopping began to dismount, while their slaves took charge of the mules and horses.
There was no escape for Hypatia; pride forbade her to follow her own maidenly instinct, and to recoil among the crowd behind her; and in another moment the Amal had lifted Pelagia from her mule, and the rival beauties of Alexandria stood, for the first time in their lives, face to face.
“May Athene befriend you this day, Hypatia!” said Pelagia with her sweetest smile. “I have brought my guards to hear somewhat of your wisdom this afternoon. I am anxious to know whether you can teach them anything more worth listening to than the foolish little songs which Aphrodite taught me, when she raised me from the sea-foam, as she rose herself, and named me Pelagia.”
Hypatia drew herself up to her stateliest height, and returned no answer.
“I think my bodyguard will well hear comparison with yours. At least they are the princes and descendants of deities. So it is but fitting that they should enter before your provincials. Will you show them the way?”
No answer.
“Then I must do it myself. Come, Amal!” and she swept up the steps, followed by the Goths, who put the Alexandrians aside right and left, as if they had been children.
“Ah! treacherous wanton that you are!” cried a young man’s voice out of the murmuring crowd. “After having plundered us of every coin out of which you could dupe us, here you are squandering our patrimonies on barbarians!”
“Give us back our presents, Pelagia,” cried another, “and you are welcome to your herd of wild bulls!”
“And I will!” cried she, stopping suddenly; and clutching at her chains and bracelets, she was on the point of dashing them among the astonished crowd—
“There! take your gifts! Pelagia and her girls scorn to be debtors to boys, while they are worshipped by men like these!”
But the Amal, who, luckily for the students, had not understood a word of this conversation, seized her arm, asking if she were mad.
“No, no!” panted she, inarticulate with passion. “Give me gold—every coin you have. These wretches are twitting me with what they gave me before—before—oh Amal, you
