a handsome, gold-embossed sheath; "weare going into a den of infamy where everything is possible. Neverunsheathe that knife until you are compelled to use it, for a scratchfrom it is certain and instant death; it is charged with the mostdeadly poison the art of the chemist has been able to produce; thesecret is known only to our Brotherhood; the discoverer is an Italianprofessor, a member of our society."
CHAPTER VI.
THE INTERVIEW
Mounting to one of the electrical railroads, we were soon at thehouse of the Prince. Passing around to the servants' entrance of thepalace, Maximilian sent in his card to the Master of the Servants,who soon appeared, bowing deferentially to my friend. We were usheredinto his private room. Maximilian first locked the door; he thenexamined the room carefully, to see if there was any one hiddenbehind the tapestry or furniture; for the room, like every part ofthe palace, was furnished in the most lavish and extravagant style.Satisfied with his search, he turned to Rudolph, as the Master of theServants was called, and handed him the message he had received,which gave the history of Estella.
"Read it," he said.
Rudolph read it with a troubled countenance.
"Yes," he said, "I am familiar with most of the facts here stated,and believe them all to be true. What would you have me do?"
"First," said Maximilian, "we desire to know if Estella is still inignorance of the purpose for which she was brought here."
"Yes," he replied; "Frederika is jealous of her, as I can see, andhas contrived to keep her out of the Prince's sight. She has nodesire to be supplanted by a younger and fairer woman."
"God be praised for that jealousy," exclaimed Maximilian. "We mustsee Estella; can you manage it for us?"
"Yes," he said, "I will bring her here. I know she is in the palace.I saw her but a few moments since. Wait for Me." "Stop," saidMaximilian, "have you the receipt for the $5,000 signed by Mrs.Plunkett?"
"No; but I can get it."
"Do so, pray; and when you bring her here introduce me to her as Mr.Martin, and my friend here as Mr. Henry. She may refuse ourassistance, and we must provide against the revenge of the Prince."
"I will do as you command," replied Rudolph, who acted throughout asif he felt himself in the presence of a superior officer.
As we sat waiting his return I was in a state of considerableexcitement. Delight, to know that she was still the pure angel I hadworshiped in my dreams, contended with trepidation as I felt I mustsoon stand in her presence.
The door opened and Rudolph entered; behind him came the tall form ofthe beautiful girl I had seen in the carriage: she seemed to mefairer than ever. Her eyes first fell upon me; she started andblushed. It was evident she recognized me; and I fancied therecognition was not unpleasant to her. She then turned to Maximilianand then to Rudolph, who introduced us as we had requested. I offeredher a chair. She sat down, evidently astonished at such an interview,and yet entirely mistress of herself. After a moment's pause,--forMaximilian, as he told me afterwards, was too bewildered with hersplendid beauty to speak,--she said, in a sweet and gentle voice:
"Mr. Rudolph tells me that you desire to speak to me on matters ofimportance."
At a sign from Maximilian Rudolph closed and locked the door. Shestarted, and it seemed to me that her eyes turned to me with moreconfidence than to either of the others.
"Miss Washington," said Maximilian, "it is true we desire to speakwith you on matters of the greatest moment to yourself. But we shallsay things so surprising to you, so harsh and cruel, so utterly inconflict with your present opinions, that I scarce know how to begin."
She had grown paler during this speech, and I then said:
"Be assured that nothing but the profound respect we feel for you,and the greatest desire to serve you, and save you from ruin, couldhave induced us to intrude upon you."
Her face showed her increasing alarm; she placed her hand on herheart, as if to still its beatings, and then, with constraineddignity, replied:
"I do not understand you, gentlemen. I do not know what the dangersare to which you allude. Can you not speak plainly?"
"My friend here, Mr. Henry," said Maximilian, looking at me, "youhave, I perceive, already recognized."
"Yes," she said, with another blush, "if I am not mistaken, he is thegentleman who saved the life of a poor beggar, some days since, andpunished, as he deserved, our insolent driver. Miss Frederika, thePrince's niece, has, at my request, refused since that time to permithim to drive us when we go out together, as we often do. I am glad tothank you again," she said, with a charmingly ingenuous air, "foryour noble act in saving that poor man's life."
"It was nothing," I said, "but if the service was of any value it hasbeen a thousand times repaid by your kind words."
"You can easily imagine," said Maximilian, "that my friend here,after that interview, was naturally curious to find out somethingabout you."
She blushed and cast down her eyes; and the thought flashed across mymind that perhaps she had been likewise curious to find out somethingabout me.
"I am a member," said Maximilian, "of a secret society. We have a'Bureau of Inquiry' whose business it is to collect information, forthe use of the society, concerning every person of any note. Thisinformation is carefully tabulated and preserved, and added to fromday to day; so that at any moment it is subject to the call of ourofficers. When my friend desired to know something about you" (herethe blue, wondering eyes were cast down again), "I sent a message toour Bureau of Inquiry, and received a reply which I have here. I fearto show it to you. The shock will be too great to learn in a momentthe utter baseness of one in whom you have trusted. I fear you havenot the courage to endure such a blow; and at the same time I know ofno better way to communicate to your purity and innocence theshocking facts which it is my duty to disclose."
Estella smiled, and reached forth her hand for the paper with thedignity of conscious courage and high blood.
"Let me read it," she said; "I do not think it can tell me anything Icannot endure."
Maximilian delivered the paper into her hand. I watched her face asshe read it. At first there was a look of wonder at the minuteness ofthe knowledge of her family which the paper revealed; then theinterest became more intense; then the eyebrows began to rise and theblue eyes to dilate with horror; then an expression of scorn sweptover her face; and as she read the last word she flung the paper fromher as if it had been a serpent, and rising up, yes, towering, asplendid image of wrath, she turned upon us and cried out:
"This is a base falsehood! A cowardly trick to wound me! A shamefulattempt to injure my dear aunt."
And, wheeling around on Rudolph, her eyes blazing, she said:
"Unlock that door! I shall reveal at once to the Prince this attackon his good name and Miss Frederika. How dare you bring these menhere with such falsehoods?"
Rudolph, alarmed for himself, hung his head in silence. He wastrembling violently.
"Rudolph," said Maximilian, solemnly, "I call upon you, by the oathyou have taken, to say to this lady whether or not the contents ofthat paper are true."
"I believe them to be true," responded Rudolph, in a low tone.
It was wonderful to see the fine indignation, the keen penetrationthat shone in Estella's eyes, as she looked first at Rudolph and thenat Maximilian.
"Rudolph," said Maximilian, "by the oath you have taken, tell MissWashington whether or not you paid $5,000 to her aunt, MariaPlunkett, for the purchase of her body, as set forth in that paper."
"It is true," replied Rudolph, in the same low tone.
"It is false!" cried Estella,--and yet I thought there was that inher tone which indicated that the hideous doubt had begun to enterher soul.
"Rudolph," said Maximilian, "tell this lady whether you took areceipt from her aunt for the money you paid for her."
"I did," replied Rudolph.
"Miss Washington," said Maximilian, like a lawyer who has reached hiscrucial question, f
or he was a trained attorney, "would you recognizeyour aunt's signature if you saw it?"
"Certainly."
"You have often seen her write?"
"Yes; hundreds of times."
"Have you any reason to distrust this good man, Rudolph? Do you notknow that in testifying to the truth he runs the risk of his owndestruction?"
"Yes, yes," she said, and there was a wild and worried look in hereyes.
"Read the receipt, Rudolph," said Maximilian.
Rudolph read, in the same low and almost trembling tones, thefollowing:
NEW YORK, August 5th, 1988.--Received of Matthew