CHAPTER XXVI
A CHARGE OF MURDER
The farmer lumbered along at my side for a while, puffing and blowinghard, and as we climbed a hilly field we had to call a halt.
"I'm not so young as you," he said, gasping and wiping his forehead.
"I'm very anxious to get to my friend," I replied.
"He didn't seem very anxious to see you; at least he didn't say anythingabout any friend; but it was a hint from him which sent me down to thatbarn of mine to look for you."
"What did he say?" I asked, seeing that there was something behind hiswords.
"We've had a very rough character about these parts for some timepast--a rascal that has been robbing right and left and has knocked oneor two of the neighbours on the head--and I was speaking of him to mywife before the old stranger, and he turned and said he had seen a manof the sort in the barn there."
I laughed but held my tongue.
"You must excuse me, but is there anything funny about the oldgentleman? He is a gentleman, of course; I could see that in atwinkle?"
The question gave a hint of the line to take. "Did you notice anythingodd about him, then?"
"It's not for me to talk, of course; but my wife thought he was a bitstrange in his head."
"Poor old fellow," I replied in a tone of commiseration.
"Ah, I thought as much," was the answer with a note ofself-satisfaction. "My wife isn't often wrong. Are you in charge of himso to speak?"
"He is in my charge just at present; but I'm not his keeper, if that'swhat you mean? He's as harmless as a child; but he fancies himself adesperate conspirator. He's a noble."
"He told us that, but we didn't believe him."
"It's true; and of course his people are well able to pay handsomely foranything that is done for him."
The bait was taken readily. "I shall be glad to help of course if Ican."
"If he's still at the house, you can. I want to get on to the city andsend his friends out for him. If you could look after him meanwhile,you can name your own price, and I'll pay you something on account ofit."
"I suppose he really is harmless. I mean he wouldn't be likely to giveany trouble if we kept him in the house?"
"Oh, no chance of it. And certainly not, if you or I were in the roomwith him. Although of course I must get on to the city. I suppose twoor three twenty mark pieces would pay you for a lost day?"
"I should think it would be worth five," he replied with Teutonicaptitude for driving a bargain.
"It's a lot of money; but we'll make it the five with an extra one forthe wife, if she looks well after him. I always like the wife to havesomething."
We came in sight of the house soon after that, and with intensesatisfaction I saw the Baron sitting by the door basking in thesunlight. Fearing that possibly he might take fright when he saw me andrun away, or do something to scare the farmer from the bargain, I gavethe latter a couple of gold pieces as an earnest, and sent him on aheadto get the Baron up into a room.
There was no difficulty. He went up to the Baron, who greeted him witha condescending smile. They spoke together, and I breathed a sigh offervent thanksgiving when the two went indoors.
That load was lifted from my shoulders, and I followed to the houseafter an interval. Over a hearty meal I heard that the Baron had beenput to bed, where he had fallen fast asleep. I did my utmost toingratiate myself with both the farmer and his wife, and laughed asheartily as he himself did when he told her how he had treated me in thebarn; and with a promise that they should be relieved of their charge assoon as possible, I set off in the farmer's cart for the nearest stationon my way back to the city, to relieve Althea's anxiety and send her outto her father's assistance.
The stroke of good luck in finding a shelter for him had raised myspirits, and as I paced up and down the platform of the littleby-station, where I had to wait over an hour for the train, I was ableto view with comparative ease of mind the complications which stillbeset me.
My first step was obvious. As soon as I had seen Althea, I would get aninterview with Herr Borsen and make a clean breast of everything, bothin regard to myself and von Felsen. I was convinced in my own mind thatthe man who had fired that shot at me after leaving the station had beeninstigated by him. I had seen him at my house, had recognized him atthe station, and again after he had fired at me.
In the face of that, it would be quixotic to wait for further proofsbefore letting von Felsen feel the weight of my hand. That day shouldsee the end of things so far as he was concerned; I would hand over toHerr Borsen, not only the confession of the theft of the papers, butalso that of the murder.
As I recalled my interview with him I saw how he had fooled me, and thathis prompt recovery from terror--which I had attributed to his relief athearing that his life might still be saved--was in reality due to hisbelief that he could compass my death in time to save himself from alltrouble through the revelation of what I had forced from him.
Such a snake as that deserved no mercy, and he should have none.
I anticipated very little trouble in getting out of my own troubles. Ihad committed no crime. My association with old Ziegler and the men whohad been plotting against the Government was in reality innocent enough;and although it was probable that those whom I had outwitted on theprevious night would tell of my presence at the wharf and would do allthey could against me, the fact that I had gone in search of the Baronwould put that right.
The one step which I did regret was that I had had to take the life ofthe man, Gassen. But it had been done in self-defence. I had notintended to do more than send him adrift in the boat, while his attackon me had meant murder and nothing short of it. But whether it would beprudent to open my lips about it was questionable, and I would awaitdevelopments before deciding.
Altogether, I was in a very confident mood as I drove from the stationto my house, and jubilant in my anticipation of Althea's delight at thegood news I could give her about her father.
But instead of having to deliver good news I had to receive bad--theworst indeed. The servants were alone in the house and on the point ofleaving it; and I found Ellen sitting disconsolately in the hall, hereyes red with weeping, dressed in her hat and jacket ready to go.
"What is the matter? Where is Fraeulein von Ringheim?"
"She has gone, sir. There has been such trouble here. We had thepolice looking for you, and they searched the house from top to bottom,"she wailed, her words interspersed with sobs. "Cook has packed, sir;and I can't stay, if you please."
"Very well, but before you go, try and tell me something more definite."
She fumbled in her pocket and brought out a telegram. "The Fraeuleinopened it, sir: I didn't; and she told me I must get it to you as it wasvery important."
It was from Bessie and announced her safe arrival in Brussels with"everything." This was one piece of good news at any rate.
"Now, Ellen," I said, turning to question her, "of course you must goaway if you wish, and I shouldn't think of stopping you. But I assureyou the whole businesss is a mistake somewhere, and you do not run thefaintest risk in staying here. Martha has not gone yet?" This was thecook.
"No, sir; but she's just ready."
"Well, while I change and look round, go and tell her to see me beforeshe leaves."
"But the police told us both to go, sir."
"I'm not at all sure that you've had the police here at all. Did theFraeulein go away with them, whoever they were?"
"No, sir. Herr von Felsen was here and was with her when the men wereturning the place upside down. You never saw such a mess as they've madeof things."
"Never mind the mess. Did he come with them?"
"Just before them, He was very excited and said they were coming."
"What time was that?"
"About midday, sir."
"And when did he leave? Did the Fraeulein go with him?"
"Yes, sir. That was about an hour ago."
It was just four o'clock. If I had not had to wait for that train, Ishould have been in time to take a hand in the business.
"I am quite convinced from your answers that these men were not police,Ellen; but tell me were any of them the men who were watching the houseyesterday?"
"Yes, sir. One of them spoke to me yesterday, and it was he who told usto-day that if we didn't go we should be in trouble. He behavedshameful, and wanted to put us out there and then without our boxes; butcook she up and told him she wasn't going without hers, and then he gaveus an hour to clear out in."
"Well done, Martha," I exclaimed, as the cook came downstairs. Iexplained to her that the men had not been the police, and endeavouredto allay the fears of them both.
I succeeded after some difficulty, and they agreed to remain.
"That fellow said he'd come back in an hour to see that we had gone,"said Martha, a woman with a great deal of spirit. "I hope he willcome"; and she nodded her head with an emphasis which promised him awarm reception.
"I don't expect you'll see him here again. Now, a last question. Didthey say anything to you about the supposed crime for which I was to bearrested?"
"They went on awful about you, sir," replied Martha. "You was aconspirator, and a murderer, and you'd either run away to get out oftheir hands or had killed yourself; and I don't know what else. But youwere never coming back. That was certain."
"Well, here I am, you see; so you can tell how much to believe of therest."
"They said they had warrants for you, sir," put in Ellen. "They showedme some papers; and the Fraeulein told me afterwards they had, and thatshe was going away in order to prevent any harm coming to you."
"Well, we'll soon have things all right again," I replied, and went offto change my clothes and view the results of the men's work.
I thought I could understand it all, I guessed that the man who hadfired at me on the previous night had mistaken my fall for the result ofhis shot, and had accordingly reported that the attempt had beensuccessful. With me out of his way, von Felsen had only to recoverpossession of the stolen paper, the keys and the confessions he hadwritten, to find his hand once more on the controlling lever ofeverything so far as Althea was concerned.
That was what the search meant, and that it had been complete, theevidence of my own eyes showed. But it had not been successful, any themore for that. The stolen paper was safe in Brussels, and I had been insuch a cyclone hurry to get after the Baron on the previous night, thatI had not stayed to look the other things up, but had thrust them intothe first place which had caught my eye. This had been the largeupright iron stove in the hall among the kindling wood and paper. Andthere I found them.
Almost every other conceivable nook and cranny in the house which wouldhave served for a hiding-place had been ransacked, and every desk anddrawer opened and searched. It was a stupendous piece of luck.
A moment's reflection decided me to leave them where they were. Myfirst task must be to find Althea. Her safety was much more to me thanmy own, and she was not safe for a single second of the time she waswith von Felsen.
It was an easy guess that his failure to find what he had sought sodrastically would put him in a very ugly mood, and even his belief in mydeath would not suffice to ease his mind. So long as that evidence ofhis crimes remained in existence, it was liable to fall into the handsof some one who would be able to use it with disastrous results to him.
I would have given much to know the story he had told to Althea. Hewould not say a word about my supposed death, and the servants'references to the warrants for my arrest suggested the line he hadtaken.
He would seek to prey upon her fears both for her father and myself, andpose as being still in a position to save us both. If he had done thatI had no doubt that he would drive her to consent to marry him; and myfear was that, exasperated by not having found what he sought and neededso desperately, he would rush matters to a crisis at once.
I hurried at once to von Felsen's house, but only to find it shut up. Iknocked and rang several times without result, and in the end had toturn away baffled and a prey to fresh fears and apprehension.
Where to look for him I had no idea, nor where to look for Althea ofcourse. I had felt so certain of finding them both at the house thatthe sting of the disappointment was all the more disconcerting.
It flashed across my thoughts that possibly Althea might have gone backto her own house, or might have communicated with Chalice in some wayduring my absence; and acting on the impulse, I jumped back into the caband told the man to drive me there.
On the way another thought occurred to me: Hagar Ziegler. She mightknow where to tell me to look for von Felsen; and I was putting my headout of the window to give the driver the fresh direction, when we pulledup at Chalice's house.
As I should lose no more than a few minutes in seeing her, I ran up tothe door, and when the servant opened it I sprang up the stairs withoutwasting the time to be announced, dashed into her room, and, without anapology for my abruptness, asked if Althea had been there.
Chalice jumped to her feet on my entrance, stared at me as if I were alunatic, and then backed and laid her hand on the bell-pull.
"Why do you come here? I can't help you, Herr Bastable. You must knowthat."
"You can answer my question at any rate. Fraeulein Althea is missingfrom my house and I am searching for her. Has she been here?"
She fixed her eyes on me with an expression of bewilderment. "She can'thelp you to escape; and of all houses in Berlin this is the last youshould have come to."
"For Heaven's sake do give me an answer. Can't you see I am on firewith impatience? Every minute may mean ruin to her."
She bent toward me and came a step or two forward. "Do you mean youdon't know? You must not stay here. It will ruin me if you are foundhere. Do you mean that you don't know?
"Know what?" I cried angrily in my exasperation.
"Good heavens! Why, that you are accused of the murder of HagarZiegler's father!"