The Adventure of Princess Sylvia Part 20

The Chancellor rose, slowly and painfully, with a reminiscence of the gout, and Maximilian regarded him in surprise, "What do you mean?" he asked.

"Only that since I can do no further good, I shall, with your permission, get out at this station, and go back to Salzbruck."

The Emperor realized, what he had not noticed until this moment, that the train was slowing down, as it pa.s.sed into the suburbs of a town.

He and the Chancellor had talked together for a full hour, and he was far from regretting the prospect of being left to himself. More than once he had come perilously near to losing his temper, forgetting his grat.i.tude and the old man's years. How much longer he could have held out, under a continued strain of provocation, he did not know; and he spoke no word of dissuasion, as Count von Markstein picked up his hat and b.u.t.toned the well-known gray overcoat for departure.

"I have pa.s.sed pleasanter hours in your society, I admit," said Maximilian, when the train stopped. "But I thank you for your motives, if not your maxims; and here's my hand."

The Chancellor bowed low, until only the shining top of his bald head was visible, as he accepted the token of amnesty.

"If Your Majesty would grant me yet one more favour in this connection, I should be grateful," he declared. "I find myself fatigued by the anxieties of the past few days, and I shall rest for some hours at my house in Salzbruck. Will you communicate with me by telephone when you have reached Wandeck, saying whether you remain there; whether you return at once; or whether you go farther?"

"I will do that willingly," said Maximilian. Again he pressed the Chancellor's hand, which was very cold, as the hands of old persons sometimes are; and five minutes later he was journeying on, alone.

CHAPTER XIII

NEWS BY TELEPHONE

WHEN the Emperor arrived at Wandeck he went immediately to the hotel which in his telegram, he had designated as a place of meeting. But no such ladies as he hoped to find had come to the Maximilianhof; and the question raised by this intelligence was, whether Miss de Courcy had failed to receive his message or, having received, had chosen to ignore it.

The doubt, harrowing while it lasted, was solved by returning to the Bahnhof; though certainty proved scarcely less tantalizing than uncertainty had been. The telegram was still in the hands of the stationmaster, to whose care it had been addressed. This diligent person had himself gone through the Orient express, from end to end, inquiring for Miss de Courcy, but no one had responded. The lady might already have left the train at Wandeck, it was true; her description might be given and inquiries made; but she would certainly not have had time to go far, and return to the train again before its departure.

It was evident throughout the short conversation that the unfortunate official was on pins and needles. Struck by the Emperor's features, which he had seen so often in painting and photograph, it yet seemed impossible that the greatest man in Rhaetia could thus be travelling about the country, in ordinary morning dress, and unattended. Sure at one instant that it must be the Emperor, as sure the next that it was not, the poor fellow struggled against his confusion in a way that would have amused Maximilian had he not been too much engrossed with other matters even to observe it. With a manner that essayed the difficult mean between reverence due to Royalty and commonplace courtesy good enough for everyday gentlemen, the stationmaster volunteered to ascertain whether the ladies described had pa.s.sed out, delivering up their tickets. A few moments of suspense followed; then came the news that no such persons had been seen.

Here was a quandary. Since Mary de Courcy and her mother had not travelled by the Orient express, where had they gone on leaving the Hohenburgerhof? Had they deceived Baroness von Lynar regarding their intentions, for the purpose of blinding the Emperor (a purpose well served), or had they simply changed their minds, as women may? Was it possible that they had changed them so radically as to go back to Schloss Lynarberg; or had they chosen to be mysterious, and vanish from Rhaetia, leaving no trace behind? Maximilian recalled the Chancellor's revelations, then dismissed them as soon as thought of.

Wherever lay the clue to this tangle, it was not in any act of which Mary de Courcy need be ashamed.

There seemed to be nothing for it but to go back to Salzbruck and await developments, or rather, stir them up by every means within his power. This was the course which Maximilian chose; and, just as he was about to act upon it, he remembered his careless promise to Count von Markstein.

There was a telephone in the railway station, and in a few moments came the "ping" of the bell which told that connection was established; then the "h.e.l.lo!" which Germany and Rhaetia had adopted from America, brought an answering squeak, unmistakably in the Chancellor's voice.

"My friends are not here; I am starting for Salzbruck again by the next train," cautiously remarked the Emperor. "I don't see the use of bothering with this, but would not break my promise. That's all; good-bye--eh?--what did you say?"

"I--have--a--piece of extraordinary news for you," came over the wire from Salzbruck. "About the ladies."

"What is it?" demanded Maximilian, in the pause that followed.

"I hinted of information which might make you see certain matters differently. I could not speak more definitely then, for I was not sure. Now I _am_ sure. Your friends did not go by the Orient express."

"I know that already," returned the Emperor, whose eyes began to flash, and who glared at the telephone as if it were some noxious beast spitting venom.

"They gave out that they were leaving Rhaetia. But they have not crossed the frontier."

"I am much obliged to you for the information. It is exactly what I wanted," was the Emperor's retort.

"You know who bought a hunting-lodge near Bunden, in the Niederwald, last year?"

"Yes, I know whom you mean," went sullenly over the wire. "What has that to do with my friends?"

"Only that one of them has gone there. You can guess which. The others remain in Salzbruck. It seems that the--new owner of the hunting-lodge has known them for some time, though he was ignorant of this malicious masquerade. The one of whom we spoke is an actress. The owner arrived at the lodge this morning, drove into town, where your friend had waited, evidently expecting him, invited her to pay him a visit; and the invitation was accepted."

"I'll never believe that till I see them together, with my own eyes!"

"Will you go with me to-night when you return, and honour them with an unexpected call?"

"I will--d--n you!" shouted the Emperor. It was the first time that he had ever so far forgotten his dignity as to swear at the Chancellor.

He dropped the receiver, tossed a gold coin, with his own head upon it (at the moment he could have wished he had no other), down on the attendant's desk, and, waving away an offer of change, stalked out of the office.

Beneath his breath he swore again, the strongest oaths which the rich language of his father land provided, anathematizing, not the maligned woman whom he loved, but the man who had maligned her.

There was madness in the thought that she could be false to herself and her confession of love for him. He would not entertain it. Let the whole world reek with foulness, if only his love might still shine above it white and remote as the young moon in heaven.

The old man whose life would scarce be safe could his Emperor lay hands upon him in his present mood--this old man had a grudge against the one perfect girl on earth. There was no shameful rag of gossip which he would not stoop to pick up from the mud and fly as a flag of battle, calming his conscience (if he still kept one) by saying that it was "for the country's good."

Telling himself these things and many others, Maximilian hurried away to inquire for the next train back to Salzbruck. There would not be another for three hours. It would be impossible to restrain his impatience for so long, sure as he was of his love's innocence. There was a raging tiger in his breast, that would not cease to tear him until he had seen Mary de Courcy, told her what it was in his heart to do for her sake, received her answer, and, through it, punished the Chancellor.

The only way to do all this without intolerable delay was to abandon his design to be inconspicuous, and order a special train. He could have one, it appeared, in an hour, or a little more. The journey to Salzbruck would occupy three hours, and it would therefore be well on toward eight o'clock before he could start for the hunting-lodge named by Von Markstein. Drive as fast as he might, he could not reach the place before half-past nine; still, he would go, and the Chancellor should go with him. Not because Miss de Courcy would be there, but rather, because she would not; and because Von Markstein must be made to confess the criminal error into which his misplaced zeal had led him.

CHAPTER XIV

THE CHANCELLOR'S LUCK

"Desperate remedies For diseases desperate grown."

TELL the truth--when convenient; spice with prevarication--when necessary; and never part with the _whole_ truth at one time, since "waste is sinful," might have been the wording of "Iron Heart's" maxim; and he had made the most of that wise policy to-day.

He had told the Emperor no lies--even through the telephone, when carelessness may be admissible; but he had arranged his truths as skillfully as p.a.w.ns upon a chess-board. It was said by some who pretended to know, that Count Eberhard von Markstein had had a Jesuit for a tutor; but be this as it would, it was certain that, when he had a goal to reach, he did not pick his footsteps by the way. A flower here and there might be trodden down in his progress, a small life broken, a reputation stained; but what was that when the nation's standard was to be set upon the mountain-top? Supposing he had said to the Emperor, after his promise of plain speaking, "Your Majesty is on a wild-goose chase. Those you seek have not left Salzbruck; they are still at the Hohenburgerhof. Otto told me they had left Lynarberg, and I called upon them at the hotel, meaning to frighten them away, as the spider frightened Miss m.u.f.fitt, by telling them that I knew all, and they had better flit, of their own accord, if they did not wish to be a.s.sisted over the frontier. They refused to see me, alleging as an excuse that some obscure person in their menage, named Collinson, had been seized with sudden illness, which would prevent their departure from Rhaetia for the present. While I awaited their answer at the hotel, Your Majesty telephoned from the Bahnhof; at least, I was certain that it must be Your Majesty, and no other. Fortunately for my plans, I overheard the person at the telephone communicating the message received to the manager, and ventured to use my influence with the landlord, not only toward obtaining permission to dictate the reply, but a promise that the transaction should be confidential. By the fact that the message came from the railway station, I judged that Your Majesty contemplated following the Orient express, in which the ladies would have gone, had it not been for their companion's illness.

I learned that no special had been ordered, and the time of the first train in which it would be possible for you to travel, then I took my place before Your Majesty got in. Had my eloquence convinced you of Miss de Courcy's unworthiness I should have urged you to return with me, thus sparing you the annoyance of a useless journey to Wandeck. As matters stood, however, I was delighted to get you out of the way, that I might hurry back and manufacture the trumps alleged to be kept in my sleeve, before you could return and interfere with my machinations." Supposing Count von Markstein had said all this, it is not probable that Rhaetia would long have rejoiced in so wise, so self-sacrificing a Chancellor.

"Iron Heart" had meekly declared his readiness to resign, but he had counted (as people who risk much for great ends usually do count) on not being taken at his word. He loved power, because he had always had it, and without it life would not have been worth living; but it was honestly for the country's sake--even for Maximilian's sake, rather than his own--that he desired to retain his high position. Without his strong hand to seize the reins, if Maximilian dropped them for a careless instant he conscientiously believed that the chariot of state was lost.

He had said what he could; he had done his best to disillusion a young man in love with an adventuress; now, neither as Chancellor nor as friend could he openly continue to protest, unless favoured by fate with some striking new developments. Privately, however, he had but taken the first step toward interference; and he meant, since worst had come to worst, to go much further. He would not even have considered it sinful to kill a woman of the type to which he a.s.signed Mary de Courcy, if nothing less than removal from an earthly sphere could have kept her from the throne of Rhaetia.

Long before his destination was reached, he had decided upon his next move. Unfortunately, its ultimate success depended upon an outside influence. But as that influence was to be Otto's, and old Eberhard held the power of making Otto a rich man or a beggar, he was not without confidence as to the result.

During the early visit paid by the younger brother to the elder that morning it had been arranged that he should be ready, on the receipt of a telegram, instantly to place his services at Eberhard's disposal.

Thus, a message, despatched from the place at which the Emperor and the Chancellor had parted, was supposed to a.s.sure Otto's meeting the returning train in an hour's time at Salzbruck.

Still, accidents do happen sometimes, to upset the best-laid schemes, therefore it was a relief to the mind of Count von Markstein to thrust his head from the carriage window on entering the station, and to behold his brother's handsome face looking up from the crowd on the arrival platform.

"Well?" said Otto, as they walked away to the carriage which awaited them outside.

"Well!" echoed the Chancellor. "That is exactly what it is not. But it shall be--it shall be well; and you shall help to make it so."

Otto flushed. "In the manner we talked of the other day?" he asked dubiously.