CHAPTER XX
A SPECIAL EFFORT
Cool hand as he was, even Lechmere glanced with astonishment at the Kingof Asturia. The ruler was small and mean-looking generally, but now heseemed to be transformed. Varney's drug must have been a powerful one tomake that difference. For here was a king--a boy specimen with red hair,but a king all the same. Count Gleikstein flashed a furious glance atMazaroff, who merely shrugged his shoulders. But he was puzzled andannoyed, as Lechmere could see from the expression of his face. Thecomedy was a pleasing one for the old queen's messenger.
The great salon was still well filled by Lord Merehaven's guests, forthis was one of the functions of the season, and few people were goingfarther to-night. It was known, too, that the great diva also hadcaptured all hearts and was going to sing again. Therefore the big room,with its magnificent pictures and china and statuary gleaming withhundreds of electric lights, was still filled with a brilliant mass ofmoving colour.
A thrill and a murmur had run round the brilliant assembly as the Kingof Asturia came in. There had been many rumours lately, but nobody quiteknew the truth. The King of Asturia had either abdicated his throne orhe had been deposed by a revolution. The papers had been full of gossiplately, for the Queen of Asturia was a popular figure in Londonsociety, and people were interested. It was for this reason--it was forthe sake of necessary people that Lord Merehaven had hoped to have seenhis royal guest earlier.
But here he was at last, making a dramatic entrance at exactly theproper time, and surprising even the man who had brought this mischiefabout.
"The constitution of an ox," Varney told himself. "With a heart likehis, too! And yet an hour ago he was looking death in the face. I'll trythat drug again."
The king came forward smiling and at his ease. He bowed to the queen,and placed her hand to his lips. Then he extended his fingers to LordMerehaven.
"My dear lord, I am much distressed to be so late," he said. "I dare saythe queen will have told you the reason why I have been delayed. Ah,good evening, Count Gleikstein. Prince Mazaroff, I wonder you are notashamed to look me in the face."
Mazaroff muttered something and looked uncomfortable. He was understoodto ask what he had done.
"Now there is an elastic conscience for you!" the king cried. "That mancomes between me and my duty to my people, and then he asks what he hasdone! He knows that love of pleasure is my stumbling-block, and he playson my weakness. Only this very afternoon he comes to me with a proposalwhich I find utterly irresistible. My dear prince, I shall have toforswear your company. You had no right to take me where you took meto-day."
Mazaroff stepped back puzzled and confused. He had decided that he knewhis man well, but here was an utterly unexpected phase of hischaracter.
"You gave me certain papers to sign," the king went on. "Positively, Ihave utterly forgotten what they were all about. Nothing very important,or I should not have presumed to sign them. Something to do withconcessions, were they not?"
"That is so, please your majesty," Mazaroff stammered. "It is a matterthat will keep. If you will go over the petition at your leisure? As aliberal-minded man myself----"
"My dear Mazaroff, your liberal-mindedness is proverbial. But as tothose papers, I lost them. Positively, they are nowhere to be found. Youmust let me have others."
A curious clicking sound came from Mazaroff's lips. The face of CountGleikstein turned pale with anger. There was a comedy going on, and thegrave listeners with their polite attention knew what was happeningquite as well as if the conversation had been in plain words.
"Your majesty is pleased to jest with me," Mazaroff said hoarsely.
"Indeed I am not, my good fellow. Blame yourself for the excellency ofthat brand of champagne. We dined somewhere, did we not? I must havechanged somewhere after, for I distinctly remember burning a hole in myshirt front with a cigarette, and behold there is no burn there now!Somewhere in the pocket of a dress-coat lies your precious concessions."
"I think," the queen said with some dignity, "we had better change theconversation. I do not approve of those medieval customs in my husband.Ah, Madame Peri is going to sing again."
There was a hush and a stir, and the glorious liquid notes broke outagain. Mazaroff slipped away, followed presently by Count Gleikstein.The latter's face was smiling and gay as he addressed some remark toMazaroff in a low tone, but his words were bitter.
"You senseless fool," he said. "How have you managed to blunder in thisidiotic way? And after everything had been so perfectly arranged. Itwould have been known to-morrow in every capital in Europe that theQueen of Asturia attended the important diplomatic and social function_alone_. We could have hinted that the king had already fled. In thepresent state of feeling in Asturia that would have insured the successof the revolution."
"And the occupation of Russia in the interests of peace," Mazaroffsneered. "My dear Gleikstein, I am absolutely dumbfounded. It was as theking says. I lured him into a house where only the fastest of men go, agambling den. I saw that act of abdication in his pocket. I saw him sohelplessly intoxicated that it was any odds he was not seen beforemorning. I arranged for him to be detained where he was. To-morrow thething would have been done; it would have been done to-day but he waspast signing. Then he comes here clothed and in his right mind. It isamazing. We shall have to begin all over again, it seems to me."
"We certainly have received a check," Gleikstein admitted with a bettergrace. "But there are other cards to play yet. Those papers missing fromthe Foreign Office, for instance. To get to the bottom of England's gamewill be a great advantage."
"Don't you know that we have been beaten there as well?" said Mazaroff.
"You don't mean to say so! Impossible! Why, the countess sent a cyphermessage to say that she had been entirely successful. The message wasnot sent direct to _me_, of course, but it came by a sure hand abouteight o'clock. The countess had not read those papers, but they weremost assuredly in her possession. She promised me that----"
"Well, she is no longer in a position to fulfil her promise," saidMazaroff. "To return, the papers were most impudently stolen from herhouse. It is quite true, my dear Gleikstein, that we both realize thepowerful secret combination that we have to fight against. Don't you seewhat a clever lot they are! How they have tracked our deeds and acts!How did they manage to recover the king and bring him here clothed andin his right mind? Why, the thing is nothing less than a miracle. Thenthe countess loses those papers almost before they are in herpossession. It is any odds that she had not even sufficient time toglance at them."
"But you are quite sure that the papers have been lost, Mazaroff?"
"Absolutely certain, though the countess did not tell me so. She lefthere in a violent hurry on her maid coming to say that there had been aburglary at her house. I heard all that in the hall. The maid said thatnothing but papers had vanished. One glance at the face of the countesstold me what papers those were. And so we have a powerful combinationagainst us who can work miracles and undo our best efforts almost beforethe knots are securely tied. For the present we are beaten, and it willbe just as well for you to realize it thoroughly."
Gleikstein would have said more, but Lechmere lounged up at the samemoment. His grey, lean face was quite smooth and placid; there was asmile on his face.
"What are you two old friends conspiring about?" he asked.
"There is never any conspiracy so far as diplomacy is concerned,"Gleikstein said smoothly. "We are all crystal wells of truth. Who toldyou we were old friends?"
"My eyes," Lechmere said quite coolly. "And my excellent memory. It isidle to try and deceive an old queen's messenger like me. You lookpuzzled, both of you. Cast your minds back to 15th November, 1897, atMoscow. It was at the Hotel Petersburg. Three men were playing loo.There was a waiter with one eye in the room. Come, there is a puzzle foryou."
And Lechmere lounged on as if anxious to catch up a passingacquaintance.
"What does he mean?" Mazaroff muttered anx
iously. "What does the fellow_know_?"