XXI
THE WHITE BLACKBIRD
Refreshed by icy baths and clean linen, and now further fortifiedagainst the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune by a supper ofcold fowl and Moselle, Captain Renoux and Garret Barres sat in theapartment of the former gentleman, gaily exchanging Latin Quarterreminiscences through the floating haze of their cigars.
But the conversation soon switched back toward the far more seriousbusiness which alone accounted for their being there together aftermany years. For, as the French officer had remarked, a good dealremained to be said between them. And Barres knew what he meant, andwas deeply concerned at the prospect.
But Renoux approached the matter with careless good humour and by aleisurely, circuitous route, which polite pussy-footing was obviouslyto prepare Barres for impending trouble.
He began by referring to his mission in America, admitting veryfrankly that he was a modest link in the system of military andpolitical intelligence maintained by all European countries in thedomains of their neighbours.
"I might as well say so," he remarked, "because it's known to therepresentatives of enemy governments here as well as to your ownGovernment, that some of us are here; and anybody can imagine why.
"And, in the course of my--studies," he said deliberately, while hisclear eyes twinkled, "it has come to my knowledge, and to theknowledge of the French Ambassador, that there is, in New York, ayoung woman who already has proven herself a dangerous enemy to mycountry."
"That is interesting, if true," said Barres, reddening to the temples."But it is even more interesting if it is not true.... And it isn't!"
"You think not?"
"I don't think anything about it, Renoux; I _know_."
"I am afraid you have been misled, Barres. And it is natural enough."
"Why?"
"Because," said Renoux serenely, "she is very beautiful, very clever,very young, very appealing.... Tell me, my friend, where did you meether?"
Barres looked him in the eyes:
"Where did you learn that I had ever met her?"
"Through the ordinary channels which, if you will pardon me, I am notat liberty to discuss."
"All right. It is sufficient that you know I have met her. Now, wheredid I meet her?"
"I don't know," said Renoux candidly.
"How long have I known her then?"
"Possibly a few weeks. Our information is that your acquaintance withher is not of long duration."
"Wrong, my friend: I met her in France several years ago; I know herintimately."
"Yes, the intimacy has been reported," said Renoux, blandly. "But itdoesn't take long, sometimes."
Barres reddened again and shook his head:
"You and your agents are all wrong, Renoux. So is your Government. Doyou know what it's doing--what you and your agents are doing? You'replaying a German game for Berlin!"
This time Renoux flushed and there was a slight quiver to his lips andnostrils; but he said very pleasantly:
"That would be rather mortifying, mon ami, if it were true."
"It is true. Berlin, the traitor in Paris, the conspirator in America,the German, Austrian, and Turkish diplomatic agents here ask nothingbetter than that you manage, somehow, to eliminate the person inquestion."
"Why?" demanded Renoux.
"Because more than one of your public men in Paris will face chargesof conspiracy and treason if the person in question ever has a fairhearing and a chance to prove her innocence of the terribleaccusations that have been made against her."
"Naturally," said Renoux, "those accused bring counter charges. It isalways the history of such cases, mon ami."
"Your mind is already made up, then?"
"My mind is a real mind, Barres. Reason is what it seeks--the logicalevidence that leads to truth. If there is anything I don't know, thenI wish to know it, and will spare no pains, permit no prejudice towarp my judgment."
"All right. Now, let's have the thing out between us, Renoux. We arenot fencing in the dark; we understand each other and are honestenough to say so. Now, go on."
Renoux nodded and said very quietly and pleasantly:
"The reference in one of these papers to the celebrated Nihla Quellenreminds me of the first time I ever saw her. I was quite bowled over,Barres, as you may easily imagine. She sang one of those Asiaticsongs--and then the dance!--a miracle!--a delight--apparently entirelyunprepared, unpremeditated even--you know how she did it?--exquisiteperfection--something charmingly impulsive and spontaneous--a capriceof the moment! Ah--there is a wonderful artiste, Nihla Quellen!"
Barres nodded, his level gaze fixed on the French officer.
"As for the document," continued Renoux, "it does not entirely explainitself to me. You see, this Eurasian, Ferez Bey, was a very intimatefriend of Nihla Quellen."
"You are quite mistaken," interposed Barres. But the other merelysmiled with a slight gesture of deference to his friend's opinion, andwent on.
"This Ferez is one of those persistent, annoying flies which buzzaround chancelleries and stir up diplomats to pernicious activities.You know there isn't much use in swatting, as you say, the fly. No.Better find the manure heap which hatched him and burn that!"
He smiled and shrugged, relighted his cigar, and continued:
"So, mon ami, I am here in your charming and hospitable city to directthe necessary sanitary measures, sub rosa, of course. You have beenmore than kind. My Government and I have you to thank for this batchof papers----" He tapped his breast pocket and made salutes whichFrenchmen alone know how to make.
"Renoux," said Barres bluntly, "you have learned somehow that NihlaQuellen is under my protection. You conclude I am her lover."
The officer's face altered gravely, but he said nothing.
Barres leaned forward in his chair and laid a hand on his comrade'sshoulder:
"Renoux, do you trust me, personally?"
"Yes."
"Very well. Then I shall trust you. Because there is nothing you cantell me about Nihla Quellen that I do not already know--nothingconcerning her _dossier_ in your secret archives, nothing in regard tothe evidence against her and the testimony of the Count d'Eblis. Andthat clears the ground between you and me."
If Renoux was surprised he scarcely showed it.
Barres said:
"As long as you know that she is under my protection, I want you tocome to my place and talk to her. I don't ask you to accept myjudgment in regard to her; I merely wish you to listen to what she hasto say, and then come to your own conclusions. Will you do this?"
For a few moments Renoux sat quite still, his clear, intelligent eyesfixed on the smoking tip of his cigar. Without raising them he saidslowly:
"As we understand it, Nihla Quellen has been a spy from the verybeginning. Our information is clear, concise, logical. We know herhistory. She was the mistress of Prince Cyril, then of Ferez, then ofd'Eblis--perhaps of the American banker, Gerhardt, also. She camedirectly from the German Embassy at Constantinople to Paris, onGerhardt's yacht, the _Mirage_, and under his protection and theprotection of Comte Alexandre d'Eblis.
"Ferez was of the party. And that companionship of conspirators neverwas dissolved as long as Nihla Quellen remained in Europe."
"That Nihla Quellen has ever been the mistress of any man issingularly untrue," said Barres coolly. "Your Government has to dowith a chaste woman; and it doesn't even know that much!"
Renoux regarded him curiously:
"You have seen her dance?" he enquired gravely.
"Often. And, Renoux, you are too much a man of the world to besurprised at the unexpected. There _are_ white blackbirds."
"Yes, there are."
"Nihla Quellen is one."
"My friend, I desire to believe it if it would be agreeable to you."
"I know, Renoux; I believe in your good-will. Also, I believe in yourhonesty and intelligence. And so I do not ask you to accept my wordfor what I tell you. Only remember that I am absolutely certainconcernin
g my belief in Nihla Quellen.... I have no doubt that youthink I am in love with her.... I can't answer you. All Europe was inlove with her. Perhaps I am.... I don't know, Renoux. But this I doknow; she is clean and sweet and honest from the crown of her head tothe sole of her foot. In her heart there has never dwelt treachery.Talk to her to-night. You're like the best of your compatriots, clearminded, logical, intelligent, and full of that legitimate imaginationwithout which intellect is a machine. You know the world; you knowmen; you don't know women and you know you don't. Therefore, you areequipped to learn the truth--to divine it--from Nihla Quellen. Willyou come over to my place now?"
"Yes," said Renoux pleasantly.
* * * * *
The orchestra was playing as they passed through the hotel; supperrooms, corridors, cafe and lobby were crowded with post-theatrethrongs in search of food and drink and dance music; and although fewtheatres were open in July, Long Acre blazed under its myriad lightsand the sidewalks were packed with the audiences filtering out of thevarious summer shows and into all-night cabarets.
They looked across at the distant war bulletins displayed on TimesSquare, around which the usual gesticulating crowd had gathered, butkept on across Long Acre, and west toward Sixth Avenue.
Midway in the block, Renoux touched his comrade silently on the arm,and halted.
"A few minutes, mon ami, if you don't mind--time for you to smoke acigarette while waiting."
They had stopped before a brownstone house which had been convertedinto a basement dwelling, and which was now recessed between twomodern shops constructed as far as the building line.
All the shades and curtains in the house were drawn and the placeappeared to be quite dark, but a ring at the bell brought a big,powerfully built porter, who admitted them to a brightly lightedreception room. Then the porter replaced the chains on the door ofbronze.
"Just a little while, if you will be amiable enough to have patience,"said Renoux.
He went away toward the rear of the house and Barres seated himself.And in a few moments the burly porter reappeared with a traycontaining a box of cigarettes and a tall glass of Moselle.
"Monsieur Renoux will not be long," he said, bringing a sheaf ofFrench illustrated periodicals to the little table at Barres' elbow;and he retired with a bow and resumed his chair in the corridor by thebronze door.
Through closed doors, somewhere from the rear of the silent housecame the distant click of a typewriter. At moments, too, looking overthe war pictures in the periodicals, Barres imagined that he heard aconfused murmur as of many voices.
Later it became evident that there were a number of people somewherein the house, because, now and then, the porter unlatched the door anddrew the chains to let out some swiftly walking man.
Once two men came out together. One carried a satchel; the otherhalted in the hallway to slip a clip into an automatic pistol beforedropping it into the side pocket of his coat.
And after a while Renoux appeared, bland, debonaire, evidently muchpleased with whatever he had been doing.
Two other men appeared in the corridor behind him; he said somethingto them in a low voice; Barres imagined he heard the words,"Washington" and "Jusserand."
Then the two men went out, walking at a smart pace, and Renouxsauntered into the tiny reception room.
"You don't know," he said, "what a very important service you haverendered us by catching that fellow to-night and stripping him of hispapers."
Barres rose and they walked out together.
"This city," added Renoux, "is fairly verminous with disloyal Huns.The streets are crawling with them; every German resort, saloon, beergarden, keller, cafe, club, society--every German drug store,delicatessen shop, music store, tobacconist, is lousy with thetreacherous swine.
"There are two great hotels where the boche gathers and plots; twogreat banking firms are centres of German propaganda; three greatdepartment stores, dozens of downtown commercial agencies; variousbuildings and piers belonging to certain transatlantic steamshiplines, the offices of certain newspapers and periodicals.... Tell me,Barres, did you know that the banker, Gerhardt, owns the building inwhich you live?"
"Dragon Court!"
"You didn't know it, evidently. Yes, he owns it."
"Is he really involved in pro-German intrigue?" asked Barres.
"That is our information."
"I ask," continued Barres thoughtfully, "because his summer home is atNorthbrook, not far from my own home. And to me there is somethingpeculiarly contemptible about disloyalty in the wealthy who owe everypenny to the country they betray."
"His place is called Hohenlinden," remarked Renoux.
"Yes. Are you having it watched?"
Renoux smiled. Perhaps he was thinking about other places, also--theGerman Embassy, for example, where, inside the Embassy itself, notonly France but also the United States Government was represented by asecret agent among the personnel.
"We try to learn what goes on among the boches," he said carelessly."They try the same game. But, Barres, they are singularly stupid atsuch things--not adroit, merely clumsy and brutal. The Hun cannotcamouflage his native ferocity. He reveals himself.
"And in that respect it is fortunate for civilisation that it isdealing with barbarians. Their cunning is of the swinish sort. Theirstench ultimately discovers them. You are discovering it foryourselves; you detected Dernberg; you already sniff Von Papen,Boy-ed, Bernstorff. All over the world the nauseous effluvia from thevast Teutonic hog-pen is being detected and recognised. Andcivilisation is taking sanitary measures to abate the nuisance.... Andyour country, too, will one day send out a sanitary brigade to helpclean up the world, just as you now supply our details with thenecessary chlorides and antiseptics."
Barres laughed:
"You are very picturesque," he said. "And I'll tell you one thing, ifwe don't join the sanitary corps now operating, I shall go out with abottle of chloride myself."
They entered Dragon Court a few moments later. Nobody was at the desk,it being late.
"To-morrow," said Barres, as they ascended the stairs, "my friends,Miss Soane, Miss Dunois, and Mr. Westmore are to be our guestsat Foreland Farms. You didn't know that, did you?" he addedsarcastically.
"Oh, yes," replied Renoux, much amused. "Miss Dunois, as you call her,sent her trunks away this evening."
Barres, surprised and annoyed, halted on the landing:
"Your people didn't interfere, I hope."
"No. There was nothing in them of interest to us," said Renouxnaively. "I sent a report when I sent on to Washington the paperswhich you secured for us."
Barres paused before his studio door, key in hand. They could hear thegramophone going inside. He said:
"I don't have to ask you to be fair, Renoux, because the man who isunfair to others swindles himself, and you are too decent, toointelligent to do that. I am going to present you to Thessalie Dunois,which happens to be her real name, and I am going to tell her in yourpresence who you are. Then I shall leave you alone with her."
He fitted his latchkey and opened the door.
Westmore was trying fancy dancing with Dulcie on one side, andThessalie on the other--the latter evidently directing operations.
"Garry!" exclaimed Thessalie.
"You're a fine one! Where have you been?" began Westmore. Then hecaught sight of Renoux and became silent.
Barres led his comrade forward and presented him:
"A fellow student of the Beaux Arts," he explained, "and we've had avery jolly evening together. And, Thessa, there is something inparticular that I should like to have you explain to Monsieur Renoux,if you don't mind...." He turned and looked at Dulcie: "If you willpardon us a moment, Sweetness."
She nodded and smiled and took Westmore's arm again, and continued thedance alone with him while Barres, drawing Thessalie's arm throughhis, and passing his other arm through Renoux's, walked leisurelythrough his studio, through the now open folding doors, past hisbedr
oom and Westmore's, and into the latter's studio beyond.
"Thessa, dear," he said very quietly, "I feel very certain thatthe worst of your troubles are about to end----" He felt herstart slightly. "And," he continued, "I have brought my comrade,Renoux, here to-night so that you and he can clear up a terriblemisunderstanding.
"And Monsieur Renoux, once a student of architecture at the BeauxArts, is now Captain Renoux of the Intelligence Department in theFrench Army----"
Thessalie lost her colour and a tremor passed through the arm whichlay within his.
But he said calmly:
"It is the only way as well as the best way, Thessa. I know you areabsolutely innocent. I am confident that Captain Renoux is going tobelieve it, too. If he does not, you are no worse off. Because it hasalready become known to the French Government that you are here.Renoux knew it."
They had halted; Barres led Thessalie to a seat. Renoux, straight,deferential, correct, awaited her pleasure.
She looked up at him; his keen, intelligent eyes met hers.
"If you please, Captain Renoux, will you do me the honour to beseated?" she said in a low voice.
Barres went to her, bent over her hand, touched it with his lips.
"Just tell him the truth, Thessa, dear," he said.
"Everything?" she smiled faintly, "including our first meeting?"
Barres flushed, then laughed:
"Yes, tell him about that, too. It was too charming for him not toappreciate."
And with a half mischievous, half amused nod to Renoux he went back tofind the dancers, whom he could hear laughing far away in his ownstudio.
* * * * *
It was nearly one o'clock when Dulcie, who had been sleeping withThessalie, whispered to Barres that she was ready to retire.
"Indeed, you had better," he said, releasing her as the dance musicran down and ceased. "If you don't get some sleep you won't feel liketravelling to-morrow."
"Will you explain to Thessa?"
"Of course. Good-night, dear."
She gave him her hand in silence, turned and offered it to Westmore,then went away toward her room.
Westmore, who had been fidgeting a lot since Thessalie had retired fora tete-a-tete with a perfectly unknown and alarmingly good-lookingyoung man whom he never before had laid eyes on, finally turned shortin his restless pacing of the studio.
"What the deuce can be keeping Thessa?" he demanded. "And who thedevil is that black-eyed young sprig of France you brought home withyou?"
"Sit down and I'll tell you," said Barres crisply, instinctivelyresenting his friend's uncalled for solicitude in Thessalie's behalf.
So Westmore seated himself and Barres told him all about the evening'sadventures. And he was still lingering unctuously over the details ofthe battle at Grogan's, the recital of which, Westmore demanding, hehad begun again, when at the farther end of the studio Thessalieappeared, coming toward them.
Renoux was beside her, very deferential and graceful in hisattendance, and with that niceness of attitude which confesses respectin every movement.
Thessalie came forward; Barres advanced to meet her with the unspokenquestion in his eyes, and she gave him both her hands with a tremulouslittle smile of happiness.
"Is it all right?" he whispered.
"I think so."
Barres turned and grasped Renoux by one hand.
The latter said:
"There is not the slightest doubt in my mind, mon ami. You wereperfectly right. A frightful injustice has been done in this matter.Of that I am absolutely convinced."
"You will do what you can to set things right?"
"Of course," said Renoux simply.
There was a moment's silence, then Renoux smiled:
"You know," he said lightly, "we French have a horror of any moremistakes like the Dreyfus case. We are terribly sensitive. Be assuredthat my Government will take up this affair instantly upon receivingmy report."
He turned to Barres:
"Would you, perhaps, offer me a day's hospitality at your home in thecountry, if I should request it by telegram sometime this week ornext?"
"You bet," replied Barres cordially.
Then Renoux made his adieux, as only such a Frenchman can make them,saying exactly the right thing to each, in exactly the right manner.
When he was gone, Barres took Thessalie's hands and pressed them:
"Pretty merle-blanc, your little friend Dulcie is already asleep. Tellus to-morrow how you convinced him that you are what you are--thedearest, sweetest girl in the world!"
She laughed demurely, then glanced apprehensively, sideways, atWestmore.
And the mute but infuriated expression on that young man's countenanceseemed to cause her the loss of all self-possession, for she cast onemore look at him and fled with a hasty "good-night!"