An Imperial Marriage

by Arthur W. Marchmont

  CHAPTER XV

  BARON VON RINGHEIM

  Baron von Ringheim had been sitting by Althea, and rose at my entranceand bowed to me with old world courtesy.

  "My father, Mr. Bastable," said Althea; and at this he advanced towardme with hand extended.

  I was still under the thrall of astonishment caused by my recognition,and only the expression of mingled pain, alarm and surprise on Althea'sface enabled me to take his hand and mumble some formal reply.

  He did not appear to notice anything strange in my conduct, however.

  "I have to return you many thanks, sir, for the assistance which youhave rendered to my daughter. She has told me how you have helped her,and I beg you to believe that I am sincerely grateful."

  He said this with an air of great dignity, of patronage, indeed; almostas if in his opinion the opportunity of helping a daughter of his wassomething upon which I might well congratulate myself.

  I murmured some sort of reply about having done very little.

  "I would not have you belittle your services, Herr Bastable," hecontinued in the same indulgent tone. "I and Althea--for she is entirelywith me in expressing this sentiment--are your debtors, distinctly yourdebtors. Our family is one of the oldest and highest in the Empire, andalthough at the present time we are the subjects of cruel persecutionand have suffered egregious wrongs and abominable robbery, it shallnever be said that we are deficient in gratitude."

  This long and curious speech gave me time to recover myself, while thelook of growing embarrassment and concern with which Althea regarded himwhile he was making it recalled to my memory what she had said of him ona former occasion.

  "I beg you to say no more," I replied.

  "That is the modesty of an English gentleman, and I appreciate it," heanswered with another elaborate flourish and bow. "I have heard of you,Herr Bastable, and was assured that I should find a welcome here. Forthat also we thank you."

  "My father can remain to-night?" asked Althea, as a sort of aside.

  He heard this, however. "To be frank with you, Herr Bastable, I am in aslight difficulty for the moment. It is some time since I was in Berlin;as a matter of fact, I am not supposed to be allowed to come here atall, and if my presence were discovered it might lead to very seriousembarrassment. I shall therefore appreciate it very highly if you willpermit me to ask your hospitality for a while."

  "I shall esteem it an honour, Baron."

  "Again I beg to assure you that I am extremely grateful."

  I had still great difficulty in suppressing the signs of infiniteamazement that this could possibly be the same man whom I had seen inthe company of the two ruffians in the old Jew's house.

  "You look very tired and worried, Mr. Bastable," said Althea. "Bessiehas very kindly seen to a room being prepared for my father."

  "I am worn out, and shall ask the Baron to excuse me"; and we bowedgravely to one another. "But there is a question I should wish to putbefore retiring--who spoke so highly of me to you as to induce you toput this confidence in me to-night?"

  "I knew that my daughter was here, Herr Bastable. The information camefrom a highly confidential source. But I was absolutely sure of you."

  A glance of appeal from Althea accompanied this courteously wordedroundabout refusal to tell me anything more, so I bade them good-nightand went away. I was indeed so fatigued that even this strangedevelopment, with all the awkward and indeed perilous complications itthreatened, could not keep me awake. I slept soundly for many hours,and did not awake until late in the morning.

  Over my breakfast Bessie gave me her views of the Baron.

  "He is a very strange old gentleman, Paul. His room is next to mine,you know; and I heard him moving about very early, hours before I gotup. And when I saw him afterwards he had forgotten who I was, and spoketo me as if I were a servant. What do you make of him?"

  "I am probably more puzzled than you are, Bess."

  "How did he come here? Did Althea tell him of us?"

  "I don't think so. Has she ever said anything to you about him?"

  "Has she said anything to you? She did to me, but I don't know whethershe meant me to tell you."

  "About the effect of his troubles upon him, you mean?"

  "Yes," she nodded rather eagerly. "I suppose he is harmless."

  "Oh yes," I said with a smile. "He'll be all right in that respect.You needn't be scared."

  "He has a loaded revolver. He left it under his pillow. Ellen wasnearly frightened out of her life when she fetched me to see it."

  "Where is it?"

  "He came in for it just as we were both there. He was really very odd.He had that little bag of his with him and----"

  "What little bag? Did he bring any luggage with him, then?"

  "Nothing except the little leather bag. Well, he apologized to us,taking me for one of the servants, as I told you, and declared that thething was not loaded--although I am sure it was--and made up a storythat he was accustomed to have it with him just for practice, and saidthat we were not to say anything to any one about it; and then heoffered us some money."

  "What did you do?" I asked with a grin.

  "It's no laughing matter, Paul. Ellen declares she can't stay in thehouse if he stops here."

  "I'll see to it. But what did you do?"

  "You don't suppose we took his money. I told him pretty sharply he hadmade a mistake; but he was so polite and seemed so sorry, that Icouldn't be angry. But you'll have to do something, or we shall loseEllen."

  "Oh, I'll do something. You need not be frightened, nor Ellen either.So far as I can see, his brain has been affected by his troubles andpersecution, and he is just a mixture of dignified gentleman andsomething else; and I'll see that when he is something else, he will notbe able to do any harm."

  "Poor Althea is in an awful state about it all. She almost broke downthis morning when speaking to me about it, and you know what wonderfulstrength she has. She believes that he will be arrested here, that someone has betrayed us, and that he has been sent here merely to get us allinto trouble. She intends to take him away somewhere to-day, I think."

  "Well, it is a bit of a mix up, Bess, and that's the truth; but I'llfind a way to straighten things out. You talk to Ellen and put herright, and if you can't, I'll see her. In the meantime, I'll go andtalk things over with Althea and her father. I was too tired lastnight."

  "Althea wants to see you. She told me so."

  "All right. I'll go up to her room as soon as I have thought mattersover."

  It was of course quite on the cards that Althea's guess at the reasonfor her father's coming to my house was the right one; and it wascertainly a disquieting suggestion. I remembered Feldermann's hintsabout my connexion with the Polish party and the questions put to me onthe previous night by the police. If we were found harbouring a man whowas held to be so dangerous as the Baron, the consequences to Althea andto us all might be really serious.

  As to his object in Berlin at such a time, I myself could make a prettyfair guess. Ziegler had more than once suggested that a stroke of somesort was to be attempted soon, and the mysterious hints dropped to methat day in the club by the Polish journalist prompted the exceedinglydisquieting thought that the attempt might take the form of some kind ofviolence.

  That Baron von Ringheim was in league with the more desperate section ofthe party was shown plainly by his having been with two of them on theprevious night at the Jew's house on a mission of violence. Yet he hadobviously gone to the house to attempt to prevent violence. Hisprotests had proved as much.

  So far as I could judge, he had gone there to investigate some chargesof treachery which had been made against the murdered man; and that vonFelsen had intentionally started those suspicions, and had in some waybeen instrumental in sending the men to the house, I was convinced. Butwhy send such a man as the Baron? Did von Felsen know that he wasactually in Berlin--and then a
light seemed to break in upon everything.

  It must have been through von Felsen that the news of Althea'swhereabouts had been conveyed to her father, and he had deliberatelycontrived that he should arrive at a moment when the murder had justbeen committed--apparently by Ziegler's associates. The moment of allothers when the Baron would be in the greatest need of shelter.

  But one of the most perplexing parts of the puzzle still remained to besolved. What was the precise character of the relationship between theBaron and the rest of this Polish party? Althea had suggested thatalthough formerly he had been a real power amongst them, in later yearshis authority and influence had ceased.

  There had been ample ground in the conduct of the two men toward him onthe preceding night to confirm this, but I must satisfy myselfcompletely on the point. I was ready, for Althea's sake, to run the riskof harbouring him; but I was certainly not going to allow him to use thehouse for the furtherance of any schemes of his party, whether violentor not.

  I went upstairs, resolved to find this out from himself. I was fortunateto find him alone in his room. I could talk more plainly to him alonethan when Althea was present.

  He had the little bag of which my sister had spoken, and he gave alittle start of surprise and hurriedly shut and locked it. I think hewas rather offended at the abrupt manner in which I entered the room,and with much the same outward show of old-fashioned courtesy which hehad displayed on the previous night there was a nervous restlessnesswhich was fresh.

  He greeted me with a bow and words of thanks, and for a moment we playedat just being guest and host. But I kept my eyes fixed steadily on himall the time, and he began to grow exceedingly uncomfortable under thescrutiny, and at length found himself quite unable to meet my eyes.

  "You must excuse me now, Herr Bastable," he said at length; and hugginghis bag as if it contained all he had in the world, he made as if toleave the room.

  For a second or two I did not reply, but just stared hard first at himand then very pointedly at the bag.

  "I must first ask you one or two questions, Baron von Ringheim." Idropped the courteous tone and put a spice of sharpness into my tone.

  He noticed it at once and drew himself up, but could not meet my eyes."I don't understand by what right you adopt that tone, sir."

  "And you will please to answer me quite frankly. Nothing else willsatisfy me or meet the needs of the case."

  "This is quite extraordinary."

  I pointed at the bag. "You have a revolver there. Why?"

  "I decline to be questioned in this tone by you or any one, sir. I amunder an obligation to you for what you have done for my daughter andnow for myself, but this gives you no right----"

  "I take the right, Baron. In the first place, believe that I am wishfulto be your friend in every sense of the term, and you may safely give meyour fullest confidence. Your daughter will have told you that, I amsure."

  "My private affairs----"

  "Are precisely those which I am determined to know, Baron," I broke inpretty sternly. I felt that I must dominate him. "This is as much foryour own sake as for your daughter's. Now, please, an answer."

  But he would not answer, and made an attempt to avoid doing so by a showof anger.

  "Tell me then the object of your presence in Berlin?" I said next.

  "This is insufferable conduct, sir. Insufferable," he cried.

  I should have to hit him harder if I was to do anything with him. "Tellme then what you were doing at the house of Herr Ziegler just after hehad been assassinated last night?"

  The effect was instantaneous. He turned very white, stared at me for asecond and began to tremble violently.

  "What do you mean?" he faltered after a pause.

  "I was there and saw you, Baron."

  He clasped his hands to his face and fell back into a chair.

  "Remember, please, that I speak only as a friend. I declare to you on myhonour that I have no motive but to help you. But I must be toldeverything. Put yourself unreservedly into my hands, and I can and willsave you; but there must be no half measures. I repeat, you must tell meeverything."

  For a long time he was unable to speak a word, and I made no attempt toforce matters. I wished him to recover some measure of self-control.

  "I had nothing to do with that--that deed," he said presently, speakingin a slow broken tone.

  "I know that. I know that the man was dead before you arrived; but yourcompanions came prepared to do it, and but for my presence, there wouldhave been a second murder."

  "No, no, no," he protested.

  "I know what I say to be true, Baron; just as I am convinced that youwent there to protest against any violence at all."

  "Ah, you know that. Yes, that is true. I swear that," he criedeagerly. "I should have prevented it. My authority as leader would haveprevented it. Would to Heaven I had been in time!"

  "You have great influence with your associates, then?"

  "I am the leader of the whole movement. My word is absolute."

  The declaration was made with a singular mixture of pride andsimpleness. It was obvious that he believed it. "You think those menlast night would have obeyed you?"

  "They would not have dared to disobey," he replied in the same tone. "Iwent there to inquire into a charge of treachery against Ziegler--thathe had betrayed some of our plans to an Englishman---- Why it was toyou, of course." He said this with a little start as if he had justrecalled it. "I was called to Berlin on that very matter."

  I began to see light now. Althea was right in one respect--his mind wasso affected and his memory so clouded that consecutive reasoning wasimpossible. He was not responsible for either words or deeds. But therewas more behind. Some one was using him as a stalking horse for verysinister purposes.

  "You arrived in the capital yesterday and were told to come to the houseof a man believed to be about to betray your schemes?"

  "Yes," he said simply, almost pathetically.

  "Can you think of any reason for that?"

  "No. I didn't understand it. I forgot until this moment, indeed, thatyou were the suspected Englishman."

  It was obviously useless to question him any more about that. "Now, asto this other purpose--the bigger plan of your associates?"

  "You know that too?"

  "Have I not proved to you that I know things? But I am not a traitor,Baron."

  He smiled childishly. He had become almost like a child, indeed, now."It will be a grand stroke against the Government. We shall destroy thevessel, of course; but there will be no loss of life. I will notsanction the taking of lives, Herr Bastable."

  So this was the scheme. To blow up one of the Kaiser's warships. Irepressed all signs of astonishment and tried to look as if I hadexpected the reply. "But you cannot avoid loss of life, Baron."

  It proved a very fortunate remark. With a very cunning smile he lookedup and nodded his head knowingly. "I shall not allow it to be doneuntil I am sure of that. I keep the bomb in my own possession tillthen"; and he hugged the little bag closer than ever to his side.

  Here was a complication indeed. A lunatic in the house with a bomb inhis possession capable of blowing a warship to fragments.

  And this was the man I had described to Bessie as harmless!