VI
Princess Revolutionary
The Woman of Gratz was very human. But to Bartholomew she seemed a thing of ice, passionless, just a beautiful woman who sat stiffly in a straight-backed chair, regarding him with calm, questioning eyes. They were in her flat in Bloomsbury on the evening of the day following his interview with Menshikoff. Her coolness chilled him, and strangled the very passion of his speech, and what he said came haltingly, and sounded lame and unconvincing.
вАЬBut why?вАЭ that was all she asked. Thrice he had paused appealingly, hoping for encouragement, but her answer had been the same.
He spoke incoherently, wildly. The fear of the Four on the one hand and the dread of the Reds on the other, were getting on his nerves.
He saw a chance of escape from both, freedom from the four-walled control of these organizations, and before him the wide expanse of a trackless wilderness, where the vengeance of neither could follow.
Eden in sightвБ†вАФhe pleaded for an Eve.
The very thought of the freedom ahead overcame the depression her coldness laid upon him.
вАЬMariaвБ†вАФdonвАЩt you see? You are wasting your life doing this manвАЩs workвБ†вАФthis assassinвАЩs work. You were made for love and for me!вАЭ He caught her hand and she did not withdraw it, but the palm he pressed was unresponsive and the curious searching eyes did not leave his face.
вАЬBut why?вАЭ she asked again. вАЬAnd how? I do not love you, I shall never love any manвБ†вАФand there is the work for you and the work for me. There is the cause and your oath. Your comradesвБ†вАФвАЭ
He started up and flung away her hand. For a moment he stood over her, glowering down at her upturned face.
вАЬWork!вБ†вАФComrades!вАЭ he grated with a laugh. вАЬDвАЩye think IвАЩm going to risk my precious neck any further?вАЭ
He did not hear the door open softly, nor the footfall of the two men who entered.
вАЬAre you blind as well as mad?вАЭ he went on brutally. вАЬDonвАЩt you see that the thing is finished? The Four Just Men have us all in the hollow of their hands! TheyвАЩve got us like that!вАЭ He snapped his fingers contemptuously. вАЬThey know everythingвБ†вАФeven to the attempt that is to be made on the Prince of the Escorials! Ha! that startles youвБ†вАФyet it is true, every word I sayвБ†вАФthey know.вАЭ
вАЬIf it is true,вАЭ she said slowly, вАЬthere has been a traitor.вАЭ
He waved his hand carelessly, admitting and dismissing the possibility.
вАЬThere are traitors alwaysвБ†вАФwhen the pay for treachery is good,вАЭ he said easily; вАЬbut traitor or no traitor, London is too hot for you and me.вАЭ
вАЬFor you,вАЭ corrected the girl.
вАЬAnd for you,вАЭ he said savagely; he snatched up her hand again. вАЬYouвАЩve got to comeвБ†вАФdo you hearвБ†вАФyou beautiful snow womanвБ†вАФyouвАЩve got to come with me!вАЭ
He drew her to him, but a hand grasped his arm, and he turned to meet the face of Starque, livid and puckered, and creased with silent anger.
Starque was prepared for the knife or for the pistol, but not for the blow that caught him full in the face and sent him staggering back to the wall.
He recovered himself quickly, and motioned to Fran√Іois, who turned and locked the door.
вАЬStand away from that door!вАЭ
вАЬWait!вАЭ
Starque, breathing quickly, wiped the blood from his face with the back of his hand.
вАЬWait,вАЭ he said in his guttural tone; вАЬbefore you go there is a matter to be settled.вАЭ
вАЬAt any time, in any place,вАЭ said the Englishman.
вАЬIt is not the blow,вАЭ breathed Starque, вАЬthat is nothing; it is the matter of the Inner CouncilвБ†вАФtraitor!вАЭ
He thrust out his chin as he hissed the last word.
Bartholomew had very little time to decide upon his course of action. He was unarmed; but he knew instinctively that there would be no shooting. It was the knife he had to fear and he grasped the back of a chair. If he could keep them at a distance he might reach the door and get safely away. He cursed his folly that he had delayed making the coup that would have so effectively laid Starque by the heels.
вАЬYou have betrayed us to the Four Just MenвБ†вАФbut that we might never have known, for the Four have no servants to talk. But you sold us to the EmbassyвБ†вАФand that was your undoing.вАЭ
He had recovered his calm.
вАЬWe sent you a message telling you of our intention to destroy the Bank of England. The Bank was warnedвБ†вАФby the Four. We told you of the attempt to be made on the GrondovitchвБ†вАФthe captain was warned by the EmbassyвБ†вАФyou are doubly convicted. No such attempts were ever contemplated. They were invented for your particular benefit, and you fell into the trap.вАЭ
Bartholomew took a fresh grip of the chair. He realized vaguely that he was face to face with death, and for one second he was seized with a wild panic.
вАЬLast night,вАЭ Starque went on deliberately, вАЬthe Council met secretly, and your name was read from the list.вАЭ
The EnglishmanвАЩs mouth went dry.
вАЬAnd the Council said with one voiceвБ†вАКвБ†вА¶вАЭ Starque paused to look at the Woman of Gratz. Imperturbable she stood with folded hands, neither approving nor dissenting. Momentarily BartholomewвАЩs eyes too sought her faceвБ†вАФbut he saw neither pity nor condemnation. It was the face of Fate, inexorable, unreasoning, inevitable.
вАЬDeath was the sentence,вАЭ said Starque in so soft a voice that the man facing him could scarcely hear him. вАЬDeathвБ†вАКвБ†вА¶вАЭ
With a lightning motion he raised his hand and threw the knife.вБ†вАКвБ†вА¶
вАЬDamn youвБ†вАКвБ†вА¶вАЭ whimpered the stricken man, and his helpless hands groped at his chestвБ†вАКвБ†вА¶ then he slid to his knees and Fran√Іois struck preciselyвБ†вАКвБ†вА¶
Again Starque looked at the woman.
вАЬIt is the law,вАЭ he stammered, but she made no reply.
Only her eyes sought the huddled figure on the floor and her lips twitched.
вАЬWe must get away from here,вАЭ whispered Starque.
He was shaking a little, for this was new work for him. The forces of jealousy and fear for his personal safety had caused him to take upon himself the office that on other occasions he left to lesser men.
вАЬWho lives in the opposite flat?вАЭ
He had peeped through the door.
вАЬA studentвБ†вАФa chemist,вАЭ she replied in her calm, level tone.
Starque flushed, for her voice sounded almost strident coming after the whispered conference between his companion and himself.
вАЬSoftly, softly,вАЭ he urged.
He stepped gingerly back to where the body was lying, made a circuit about it, and pulled down the blind. He could not have explained the instinct that made him do this. Then he came back to the door and gently turned the handle, beckoning the others. It seemed to him that the handle turned itself, or that somebody on the other side was turning at the same time.
That this was so he discovered, for the door suddenly jerked open, sending him staggering backward, and a man stood on the threshold.
With the drawn blind, the room was in semidarkness, and the intruder, standing motionless in the doorway, could see nothing but the shadowy figures of the inmates.
As he waited he was joined by three others, and he spoke rapidly in a language that Starque, himself no mean linguist, could not understand. One of his companions opened the door of the studentвАЩs room and brought out something that he handed to the watcher on the threshold.
Then the man entered the room alone and closed the door behind him, not quite close, for he had trailed what looked like a thick cord behind him and this prevented the shutting of the door.
Starque found his voice.
вАЬWhat do you want?вАЭ he asked, quietly.
вАЬI want Bartholomew, who came into this room half an hour ago,вАЭ replied the intruder.
вАЬHe has left,вАЭ said Starque, and in the darkness he felt at his feet for the dead manвБ†вАФhe needed the knife.
вАЬThat is a lie,вАЭ said the stranger coolly; вАЬneither he nor you, Rudolph Starque, nor the Woman of Gratz, nor the murderer Fran√Іois has left.вАЭ
вАЬMonsieur knows too much,вАЭ said Starque evenly, and lurched forward, swinging his knife.
вАЬKeep your distance,вАЭ warned the stranger, and at that moment Starque and the silent Fran√Іois sprang forward and struck.вБ†вАКвБ†вА¶
The exquisite agony of the shock that met them paralysed them for the moment. The sprayed threads of the вАЬliveвАЭ wire the man held before him like a shield jerked the knife from StarqueвАЩs hands, and he heard Fran√Іois groan as he fell.
вАЬYou are foolish,вАЭ said the voice again, вАЬand you, madame, do not move, I begвБ†вАФtell me what has become of Bartholomew.вАЭ
A silence, then:
вАЬHe is dead,вАЭ said the Woman of Gratz.
She heard the man move.
вАЬHe was a traitorвБ†вАФso we killed him,вАЭ she continued calmly enough. вАЬWhat will you doвБ†вАФyou, who stand as a self-constituted judge?вАЭ
He made no reply, and she heard the soft rustle of his fingers on the wall.
вАЬYou are seeking the lightвБ†вАФas we all seek it,вАЭ she said, unmoved, and she switched on the light.
He saw her standing near the body of the man she had lured to his death, scornful, defiant, and strangely aloof from the sordidness of the tragedy she had all but instigated.
She saw a tanned man of thirty-five, with deep grave eyes, a broad forehead, and a trim pointed beard. A man of inches, with strength in every line of his fine figure, and strength in every feature of his face.
She stared at him insolently, uncaring, but before the mastery of his eyes, she lowered her lids.
It seemed the other actors in the drama were so inconsiderate as to be unworthy of notice. The dead man in his grotesque posture, the unconscious murderer at his feet, and Starque, dazed and stunned, crouching by the wall.
вАЬHere is the light you want,вАЭ she went on, вАЬnot so easily do we of the Red Hundred illuminate the gloom of despair and oppressionвБ†вАФвАЭ
вАЬSpare me your speechmaking,вАЭ said Manfred coldly, and the scorn in his voice struck her like the lash of a whip. For the first time the colour came to her face and her eyes lit with anger.
вАЬYou have bad counsellors,вАЭ Manfred went on, вАЬyou, who talk of autocrats and corrupt kingshipвБ†вАФwhat are you but a puppet living on flattery? It is your whim that you should be regarded as a conspiratorвБ†вАФa Corday. And when you are acclaimed Princess Revolutionary, it is satisfactory to your vanityвБ†вАФmore satisfactory than your title to be hailed Princess Beautiful.вАЭ
He chose his words nicely.
вАЬYet menвБ†вАФsuch men as these,вАЭ he indicated Starque, вАЬthink only of the Princess BeautifulвБ†вАФnot the lady of the Inspiring Platitudes; not the frail, heroic Patriot of the Flaming Words, but the warm flesh and blood woman, lovable and adorable.вАЭ
He spoke in German, and there were finer shades of meaning in his speech than can be exactly or literally translated. He spoke of a purpose, evenly and without emotion. He intended to wound, and wound deeply, and he knew he had succeeded.
He saw the rapid rise and fall of her bosom as she strove to regain control of herself, and he saw, too, the blood on her lips where her sharp white teeth bit.
вАЬI shall know you again,вАЭ she said with an intensity of passion that made her voice tremble. вАЬI shall look for you and find you, and be it the Princess Revolutionary or the Princess Beautiful who brings about your punishment, be sure I shall strike hard.вАЭ
He bowed.
вАЬThat is as it may be,вАЭ he said calmly; вАЬfor the moment you are powerless, if I willed it you would be powerless foreverвБ†вАФfor the moment it is my wish that you should go.вАЭ
He stepped aside and opened the door.
The magnetism in his eyes drew her forward.
вАЬThere is your road,вАЭ he said when she hesitated. She was helpless; the humiliation was maddening.
вАЬMy friendsвБ†вАФвАЭ she began, as she hesitated on the threshold.
вАЬYour friends will meet the fate that one day awaits you,вАЭ he said calmly.
White with passion, she turned on him.
вАЬYou!вБ†вАФthreaten me! a brave man indeed to threaten a woman!вАЭ
She could have bitten her tongue at the slip she made. She as a woman had appealed to him as a man! This was the greatest humiliation of all.
вАЬThere is your road,вАЭ he said again, courteously but uncompromisingly.
She was scarcely a foot from him, and she turned and faced him, her lips parted and the black devil of hate in her eyes.
вАЬOne dayвБ†вАФone day,вАЭ she gasped, вАЬI will repay you!вАЭ
Then she turned quickly and disappeared through the door, and Manfred waited until her footsteps had died away before he stooped to the half-conscious Starque and jerked him to his feet.