Sentinels Recount Prior Sightings of the Eerie Figure
Soon after, Emily hears distant shouting and the watchword being passed along the terrace, and calls out to the soldiers to ask what happened. They stop, and she learns that fellow sentinel Roberto had been seized with a fit after seeing the mysterious figure. Roberto and other soldiers recount that they have seen the same unidentifiable figure on the ramparts before, with one prior sighting a week earlier where the figure vanished before they could approach it. The soldiers conclude the figure must be the devil, as no living person could move through the castle so silently and evade capture. Emily closes her casement to reflect on the strange events, her imagination inflamed with superstitious fear as she tries to make sense of the sightings.
CHAPTER IV
There is one within, / Besides the things that we have heard and seen, / Recounts most horrid sights, seen by the watch. / JULIUS CÆSAR
Opening Epigraph (Julius Caesar)
The chapter opens with an epigraph from Julius Caesar spoken by a watchman, warning of horrible sights witnessed during the night watch.
Morning With Dying Madame Montoni
In the morning, Emily finds Madame Montoni nearly unchanged from the preceding night. She has slept poorly and shows little improvement. Though cheered by Emily’s presence, she speaks only a few words and never mentions Montoni. Montoni soon enters the room, causing visible agitation in his wife, though she remains silent.
Montoni Demands Estate Signature From Dying Wife
Montoni’s visit proves far from comforting. Knowing his wife is dying, he seeks only to obtain her signature transferring her estates in Languedoc to him rather than to Emily. Emily repeatedly offers to resign all claim to those estates to spare her aunt further distress, but Montoni refuses to leave without securing the signature.
Estate Dispute Leaves Madame Montoni Fainting
The scene displays Montoni’s characteristic inhumanity against his wife’s determined spirit fighting a failing body. When Montoni finally departs, Madame Montoni has collapsed from exhaustion, remaining insensible so long that Emily fears life has departed.
Madame Montoni Recovers, Reveals Hidden Estate Papers
Madame Montoni revives, and after receiving a cordial, discusses her French estates with clarity and precision. She directs Emily to concealed papers relating to these properties that she has hidden from Montoni’s search, charging her niece never to let them escape her possession.
Emily Watches Over Aunt, Waits for Mysterious Figure
After Madame Montoni sinks into peaceful sleep, Emily remains at her bedside until past midnight. Her aunt then pleads with her to rest, and Emily withdraws to her own apartment. Unable to sleep due to her troubled, wakeful state, she resolves to watch again for the mysterious figure that has both fascinated and alarmed her.
Storm Rises, Emily Spots Flame on Castle Terrace
It is now the second watch, and Emily stations herself at her casement with her lamp placed distantly to avoid detection. The moon is obscured by heavy vapors when she spots a small, wandering flame on the terrace below. Lightning flashes illuminate the landscape intermittently, revealing glimpses of mountains, ancient arches, the turret, and fortifications before plunging everything back into darkness.
Emily Converses With Sentinel Anthonio
The flame moves closer, and Emily hears footsteps beneath her casement. She calls out, demanding who passes. A voice identifies itself as Anthonio, one of the Signor’s soldiers. When Emily asks about the strange tapering light, Anthonio explains it has appeared on the point of his lance and his fellow guard’s arms throughout his watch, though he cannot explain its meaning. Emily notices that, unlike the previous night’s figure, this person carries arms and does not move silently.
Sentinel Attributes Flame to an Omen
Anthonio’s fellow guard claims to have seen the flame before and believes it is an omen of bad fortune, though he cannot specify what harm it foretells. While his comrade tells strange stories about the castle, Anthonio declines to repeat them, professing satisfaction with his position under their Chief.
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