A Dash .. .. .. For a Throne Part 8

"Quick, decide," I interposed sharply. "There can't be two masters here."

He hesitated, glancing first at and then away from me, while I kept my eyes fixed steadily on his face.

"Quick," I repeated sternly.

"Curse you, I'll make you pay for this!" he swore under his breath, with a vicious scowl. Then aloud, "Of course you people will understand that for the moment the present Prince here is your master," and with a wave of the hand he indicated me. He did it as ungraciously as he dared, and as soon as he had finished he left the room.

The effect of the incident was twofold--it strengthened my authority in the castle, and it made it more difficult than ever for me to draw back.

But I had no thought now of doing that. I felt that I had cut off my retreat; and that, although I would much rather have told the Countess Minna exactly what my position was, any such candor was for the moment at least quite out of the question.

Of the girl herself I saw nothing during the next few days, and I pa.s.sed the time absorbing all the information I could get, and trying to form a plan of campaign.

I guessed that nothing would be done by the agents of the Ostenburg family until a sufficient time had elapsed after the Prince's funeral to make it plain what we intended to do; and I judged that their next move would be determined by our own acts.

The funeral took place and directly afterward von Nauheim left the castle without acquainting me with his plans; and for four or five days following the Countess Minna gave no sign of a desire to see me. I began to grow impatient. I had no wish to force myself on her or into her confidence, but it was imperative that I should at least learn her wishes both in regard to von Nauheim and the big scheme of which her marriage was a part. In the mean time von Krugen was urging me to come to a decision to strike a blow to show our friends in Munich that we were going on with the matter.

I had come to the conclusion, however, that there was no chance whatever of carrying through any such plot as the old Prince had attempted. If it had ever been practicable to carry it out successfully, the chance had pa.s.sed when the son, Gustav, had been killed. Up to that time there had, indeed, been a pretty widespread sympathy with the movement; and if a bold coup had been made, the lunatic King kidnapped, the young fellow proclaimed, and the Prince's power, shrewdness, and enormous influence thrown into the scales, it was possible that enough strength might have been paraded in the country to force the hands of the Imperial Government. But with the death of the son went half the support; and now with the death of the Prince I judged that more than half the remainder would go. It seemed to me, therefore, a sheer impossibility to carry such a scheme through successfully. The utmost I could hope to achieve would be to make such terms as should secure the safety of the Countess Minna, as well as of those who had been concerned in the plot thus far.

Obviously they were compromised up to the hilt; and the manner in which Gustav's death had been compa.s.sed showed that among the Ostenburg interest there were men of great daring and recklessness ready to go to any length in defence of their own. They were on the winning side now, moreover, and I deemed it certain that to whatever lengths they might go they were pretty certain to secure the covert sanction of the authorities at Berlin. Berlin would side with the successful, I reckoned. Thus the more closely I probed the situation the less I liked it.

But in these desperate circ.u.mstances, where each man who took a part was playing with his life, what was a coward like von Nauheim doing? Even if he was angling to get possession of the wealth which would be the portion of the countess, he was not the man to run his neck into a noose: and whoever married the Countess Minna would inevitably have as part of that dowry the implacable enmity of her enemies.

What, then, ought I to do? My instincts were all in favor of striking some kind of blow, and of being the attacker instead of waiting to be attacked. We appeared to be in danger of being squeezed out of existence. Our supporters were falling away, our position growing weaker, and our resources becoming feebler the longer we waited. If we could only effect some little thing, it seemed that we should be in a better position to negotiate than if we merely did nothing. But what could we do?

There was another serious danger in delay, moreover, arising out of the consummate uncertainty of my own position. It was one thing to be mistaken for the rightful heir to the Prince, but quite another to attempt to make good that claim legally; and I soon had a sharp reminder of this.

The old lawyer who had acted for the Prince came to me a few days after the funeral for his instructions. I expressed in a general way what I wished, and then he said:

"There are certain of the estates which have always gone with the t.i.tle, and should go now. It would be possible to make a claim to them against the actual provisions of the will."

He put it suggestively.

"I shall make no claim," I answered. "I do not for a moment intend to interfere with the Prince's disposition of matters."

"But he would have wished you to have them, I know. Indeed, I have letters from him to that effect."

"I shall not interfere with the will," I returned, rather abruptly.

"They are very rich estates."

"That makes no difference to me."

"The cost of maintaining the dignity of your Highness's t.i.tle and position will be very heavy, and without them scarcely practicable."

"I have my private fortune, and that will and must suffice."

"Indeed!" he exclaimed in surprise. "I thought I knew to a mark the extent of your mother's small income. It is derived almost entirely from the Graffenheim property; and I understand that within the last few days you have ordered it to be sold. Do you not intend your affairs to remain in my hands?"

Here was clearly a mess I had not foreseen. The real man was getting rid of his German property when he turned Frenchman.

"You will certainly have my confidence, my dear sir," I said, in a carefully courteous manner. "And of course my affairs will remain in your hands. This, however, is only a very small thing, and I did not know of my uncle's death when I put it in hand."

"The Prince was always desirous of purchasing that property, because, as you know, it lies in the midst of the Gramberg estates. If you wish to sell it I should advise the Countess Minna to purchase it."

"I shall not sell it to the Countess Minna," I said, at a loss how to parry him. "I mean that probably I shall withdraw it from sale altogether now."

He looked at me in such surprise that I saw he knew something which made my reply ridiculous; but, being afraid to offend me, he said no more about it, and answered:

"That is, of course, just as you will. Then should I get on with the preparation of the papers of formal proof of your succession?"

"I don't know what is wanted," said I indifferently, though the man's words had sprung a mine under my very feet.

"Mere formalities, of course; just tracing your descent. The certificates of birth and such matters."

"Oh, yes; whatever is necessary you may prepare. Will it take long?"

His answer would tell me what time I should have for the whole business.

"No. A day or two--not more."

The reply filled me with consternation. I could not possibly make a legal claim to what did not belong to me; and yet I must have time--weeks, at least, and probably months. I let no sign of my feeling show in my face, but sat impa.s.sively thoughtful. Then, as if debating a point, I answered:

"You will have to create some delay in the matter. It is useless keeping my confidence from you. This will of the Prince's leaves me nothing but the castle, and that seems to have been about the only part of his property that he had mortgaged; so that practically there is nothing.

Whether I shall accept the inheritance, therefore--and, of course, the t.i.tle with it--is a question I have yet to decide; and I must have as long a time for that decision as possible; but, mark you, no one must know of this but yourself. This is my first confidential commission to you. Certain things might determine me at once; but marriages cannot be arranged in a week. You understand? And I have no fancy for the life of a man weighted with a big t.i.tle and no means to support it properly."

He bowed as if in acquiescence, although this glaring contradiction of what I had said only a minute before obviously perplexed and disconcerted him.

"And now that you have my confidence," I said, laying great stress on the word, "tell me how long can we postpone these formalities--or, in other words, how long can I have to carry out my--my plan?" And I smiled slightly, as though the plan were some such matrimonial one as I had hinted at.

"A month, perhaps two months, without provoking much comment--of course, provided there is no opposition," he replied cautiously.

"I will find a way to deal with any opposition," said I promptly. "And now we understand one another."

With that I dismissed him. I saw the danger of this new development. The least suspicion would inevitably cause inquiry; and the most superficial inquiry would as inevitably bring the whole house of cards tumbling about my ears. But I had certainly one month, and perhaps two; and I must put the time to the best use I could.

The question of what that use should be was considerably influenced by von Nauheim, who returned that night, and immediately sought an interview with me. I noticed at once a marked change in his att.i.tude.

"I want a confidential talk with you, Prince," he said; "and before we begin I wish to say I am very sorry I made a bear of myself to you before the funeral. But I was frightfully upset at the Prince's sudden death. It seemed to me that all our plans were going to the devil, and it was impossible for a man who had had only a student's career like yours to be of any use in such a case as ours. I own that I tried to frighten you into leaving here without going into matters; and then it was I saw what a different kind of man you were. But I was too wild to own it."

"And what has changed you since?"

"I've been in Munich in conference with our friends there to ascertain what effect the Prince's death will have."

"Well?"

"Von Krugen tells me you know everything, and the long and short of it is that if you'll join us we shall all be only too glad to have your help. I need scarcely tell you that those who stand by us now will reap the harvest when we've succeeded. It's deuced hard on you to have the whole of the Prince's fortune left away to Minna. Once this thing gets through she won't want it, of course; and it'll be my business to see that the Gramberg estates go with the t.i.tle. I give you my word on that."

The man was lying, of course; but it wouldn't do to show that I knew it.