‘Only when these gunmen have been caught,’ said Josep.
Eventually, after men in the audience had stopped the gunmen, the three constables along with re-enforcements reappeared. They arrested the four gunmen and dragged them off, presumably to some place of detention. By then, apart from a few stragglers and some so terrified they had stayed fixed to the spot, the auditorium was empty.
The band and the actors had stayed on the stage during the commotion. The last thing they needed was to affect their ability to play which they protected by keeping clear. They had been intent on conducting another performance in the afternoon but that was impossible, if only because of the damage to the auditorium. The theatre manager decided that the later …show more content…
The band soon found one where they could all sit together.
‘Well, what was that about?’ asked Carlos, looking quite pale.
‘Hard to say,’ said Iago, with an air of indifference.
‘Something to do with the Moriscos, I’ll bet,’ said Josep.
‘I think you are right,’ said Antonio. ‘It’s a protest like the one I saw a few weeks back in Madrid. But there are things I don’t understand. Why did these people use guns when there was no way they could escape? They were outnumbered from the start and had no hope of getting away. They were suicidal. It must have been to draw attention.’
‘But attention from whom? We cannot be sure they were Moriscos,’ said Carlos.
‘I can be certain,’ said Antonio. ‘I recognised the gunmen as companions of the man Pedro, obviously a Morisco, who took me to the doctor’s house where I was threatened this morning.’
‘The mere fact that you recognised them hardly makes it a protest,’ said Josep.
‘Wait until you see the news sheets in the morning,’ said …show more content…
‘We are here to affect an arrest.’ ‘Just a moment,’ said Carlos, smiling. ‘Constables, do you mind if we ask this man a few questions… in your presence, of course? He’s the manager of the troupe of actors who were playing when the guns were fired.’ ‘How’s that going to help?’ said the one with the mole. ‘Give me a chance and you’ll see,’ said Carlos. ‘Go ahead,’ said the short one. Carlos put his questions, just like a lawyer. ‘Tell me, Andres, in the play we were performing, is there a whistle in the script? If so, at what point in the play is it sounded?’ ‘Yes, there is a whistle in the script. It is played to signal that the way is clear for the knight commander to enter the house and attempt to seduce Casilda.’ ‘There you are, constables. Andres here has explained everything!’ ‘Thank you, gentlemen. You have indeed explained it,’ said the short constable. ‘I have only one further question: could the gunmen have known about the whistle?’ ‘Yes,’ said Antonio. ‘Unless the timing of the gunshots was pure coincidence. Iago blew the whistle twice yesterday, once at each performance, and I imagine the gunmen were there at one of them and planned to shoot on the sounding of the
Eventually, after men in the audience had stopped the gunmen, the three constables along with re-enforcements reappeared. They arrested the four gunmen and dragged them off, presumably to some place of detention. By then, apart from a few stragglers and some so terrified they had stayed fixed to the spot, the auditorium was empty.
The band and the actors had stayed on the stage during the commotion. The last thing they needed was to affect their ability to play which they protected by keeping clear. They had been intent on conducting another performance in the afternoon but that was impossible, if only because of the damage to the auditorium. The theatre manager decided that the later …show more content…
The band soon found one where they could all sit together.
‘Well, what was that about?’ asked Carlos, looking quite pale.
‘Hard to say,’ said Iago, with an air of indifference.
‘Something to do with the Moriscos, I’ll bet,’ said Josep.
‘I think you are right,’ said Antonio. ‘It’s a protest like the one I saw a few weeks back in Madrid. But there are things I don’t understand. Why did these people use guns when there was no way they could escape? They were outnumbered from the start and had no hope of getting away. They were suicidal. It must have been to draw attention.’
‘But attention from whom? We cannot be sure they were Moriscos,’ said Carlos.
‘I can be certain,’ said Antonio. ‘I recognised the gunmen as companions of the man Pedro, obviously a Morisco, who took me to the doctor’s house where I was threatened this morning.’
‘The mere fact that you recognised them hardly makes it a protest,’ said Josep.
‘Wait until you see the news sheets in the morning,’ said …show more content…
‘We are here to affect an arrest.’ ‘Just a moment,’ said Carlos, smiling. ‘Constables, do you mind if we ask this man a few questions… in your presence, of course? He’s the manager of the troupe of actors who were playing when the guns were fired.’ ‘How’s that going to help?’ said the one with the mole. ‘Give me a chance and you’ll see,’ said Carlos. ‘Go ahead,’ said the short one. Carlos put his questions, just like a lawyer. ‘Tell me, Andres, in the play we were performing, is there a whistle in the script? If so, at what point in the play is it sounded?’ ‘Yes, there is a whistle in the script. It is played to signal that the way is clear for the knight commander to enter the house and attempt to seduce Casilda.’ ‘There you are, constables. Andres here has explained everything!’ ‘Thank you, gentlemen. You have indeed explained it,’ said the short constable. ‘I have only one further question: could the gunmen have known about the whistle?’ ‘Yes,’ said Antonio. ‘Unless the timing of the gunshots was pure coincidence. Iago blew the whistle twice yesterday, once at each performance, and I imagine the gunmen were there at one of them and planned to shoot on the sounding of the