He had never ventured to speak to the Señora but once, on the subject, in years, and then her fury was so unbounded, that he feared she would tear him in pieces with her long bony fingers, which, when she was enraged, possessed the power of a vice. For a week after, she fed him on bread and water, and kept him confined in a dark room with too heavy tasks to allow him to question the mysterious past, or speculate on the uncertain future.
“Always a foolish dreamer,” she said. “I will teach you something, you, the brown-skinned Crimson Tuft.”
Yet it was all no use: the boy had his thoughts, that could not be chained. He was determined to escape.
“I will not excite suspicion; I will strive to please; and a time will come, yes, the time will come, when I shall know all.”
Thus in striving to lull the suspicions of the Argus-eyed woman to sleep, he grew into great favor, and became indispensable to her.
“He can do so many things that no one else can do,” she would say to herself, “but those great luminous eyes torment me. If they too could be changed. But that is beyond my power. Would I could make them dull leaden and red as his flaming crimson tuft. He is useful, very useful, but there are times, with all his quiet seeming, when I think he suspects me. Dare I trust him? that is the question.”
Here the old woman would fall into long fits of musing, and gaze into the glowing embers, till they faded into dead ashes.
One morning the old woman called Crimson Tuft to her, saying: “I am going away, to be gone for some days, and I want you to copy these papers for me. They are the deeds and other valuable papers of my property in Mexico, which you will see is very great. Let the copies be made with great distinctness, for these duplicates may be required. You see I am cautious, and trust you very much, very much.”
A look of suspicion crossed her sharp wizen face; but in the ugly brown countenance she could detect nothing but truth and sincerity.
“I can do no better,” she thought, but aloud she added, “the dwarf knows all and will see to the safety of these and every thing. If one of them is lost it would bring no end of trouble, and you would have your share.” With an ominous shake of the head, the old señora rose and left Crimson Tuft bending over the yellowed parchment, that was of the most inestimable value to her.