Beverly of Graustark

by George Barr McCutcheon

  CHAPTER X

  INSIDE THE CASTLE WALLS

  Bright and early the next morning the party was ready for the last ofthe journey to Edelweiss. Less than twenty miles separated Ganlook fromthe capital, and the road was in excellent condition. Beverly Calhoun,tired and contented, had slept soundly until aroused by the princessherself. Their rooms adjoined each other, and when Yetive, shortly afterdaybreak, stole into the American girl's chamber, Beverly was sleepingso sweetly that the intruder would have retreated had it not been forthe boisterous shouts of stable-boys in the courtyard below thewindows. She hurried to a window and looked out upon the gray-cloakedmorning. Postillions and stable-boys were congregated near the gates,tormenting a ragged old man who stood with his back against one of thehuge posts. In some curiosity, she called Beverly from her slumbers,urging the sleepy one to hasten to the window.

  "Is this one of your friends from the wilderness?" she asked.

  "It's Franz!" cried Beverly, rubbing her pretty eyes. Then she becamethoroughly awake. "What are they doing to him? Who are those ruffians?"she demanded indignantly.

  "They are my servants, and--"

  "Shame on them! The wretches! What has old Franz done that theyshould--Call to them! Tell 'em you'll cut their heads off if they don'tstop. He's a dear old fellow in spite of his rags, and he--"

  The window-sash flew open and the tormentors in the court below wereastonished by the sound of a woman's voice, coming, as it were, from theclouds. A dozen pairs of eyes were turned upward; the commotion endedsuddenly. In the window above stood two graceful, white-robedfigures. The sun, still far below the ridge of mountains, had not yetrobbed the morning of the gray, dewy shadows that belong to fiveo'clock.

  "What are you doing to that poor old man?" cried Yetive, and it was thefirst time any of them had seen anger in the princess's face. They slunkback in dismay. "Let him alone! You, Gartz, see that he has food anddrink, and without delay. Report to me later on, sir, and explain, ifyou can, why you have conducted yourselves in so unbecoming a manner."Then the window was closed and the princess found herself in the warmarms of her friend.

  "I couldn't understand a word you said, Yetive? but I knew you weregiving it to them hot and heavy. Did you see how nicely old Franz bowedto you? Goodness, his head almost touched the ground."

  "He was bowing to you, Beverly. You forgot that you are the princess tohim."

  "Isn't that funny? I had quite forgotten it--the poor old goose."

  Later, when the coaches and escort were drawn up in front of theRallowitz palace ready for the start, the princess called the chiefpostillion, Gartz, to the step of her coach.

  "What was the meaning of the disturbance I witnessed this morning?" shedemanded.

  Gartz hung his head. "We thought the man was crazy, your highness. Hehad been telling us such monstrous lies," he mumbled.

  "Are you sure they were lies?"

  "Oh, quite sure, your highness. They were laughable. He said, for onething, that it was he who drove your highness's coach into Ganlook lastevening, when everybody knows that I had full charge of the coach andhorses."

  "You are very much mistaken, Gartz," she said, distinctly. He blinkedhis eyes.

  "Your highness," he gasped, "you surely remember--"

  "Enough, sir. Franz drove the princess into Ganlook last night. He saysso himself, does he not?"

  "Yes, your highness," murmured poor Gartz.

  "What more did he say to you?"

  "He said he had come from his master, who is in the hospital, to inquireafter your health and to bear his thanks for the kindnesses you havesecured for him. He says his master is faring well and is satisfied toremain where he is. Also, he said that his master was sending him backinto the mountains to assure his friends that he is safe and to bear acertain message of cheer to them, sent forth by the princess. It was allso foolish and crazy, your highness, that we could but jibe and laugh atthe poor creature."

  "It is you who have been foolish, sir. Send the old man to me."

  "He has gone, your highness," in frightened tones.

  "So much the better," said the princess, dismissing him with a wave ofthe hand. Gartz went away in a daze, and for days he took everyopportunity to look for other signs of mental disorder in the conduct ofhis mistress, at the same time indulging in speculation as to his ownsoundness of mind.

  Ganlook's population lined the chief thoroughfare, awaiting thedeparture of the princess, although the hour was early. Beverly peeredforth curiously as the coach moved off. The quaint, half-orientalcostumes of the townspeople, the odd little children, the bright colors,the perfect love and reverence that shone in the faces of the multitudeimpressed her deeply. She was never to forget that picturesquemorning. Baron Dangloss rode beside the coach until it passed throughthe southern gates and into the countryside. A company of cavalrymenacted as escort. The bright red trousers and top-boots, with thedeep-blue jackets, reminded Beverly more than ever of the operaticfigures she had seen so often at home. There was a fierce, dark cast tothe faces of these soldiers, however, that removed any suggestion ofplay. The girl was in ecstasies. Everything about her appealed to theromantic side of her nature; everything seemed so unreal and so like thestorybook. The princess smiled lovingly upon the throngs that lined thestreet; there was no man among them who would not have laid down hislife for the gracious ruler.

  "Oh, I love your soldiers," cried Beverly warmly.

  "Poor fellows, who knows how soon they may be called upon to face deathin the Dawsbergen hills?" said Yetive, a shadow crossing her face.

  Dangloss was to remain in Ganlook for several days, on guard againstmanifestations by the Axphainians. A corps of spies and scouts wasworking with him, and couriers were ready to ride at a moment's noticeto the castle in Edelweiss. Before they parted, Beverly extracted arenewal of his promise to take good care of Baldos. She sent a messageto the injured man, deploring the fact that she was compelled to leaveGanlook without seeing him as she had promised. It was her intention tohave him come to Edelweiss as soon as he was in a condition to beremoved. Captain Dangloss smiled mysteriously, but he had no comment tomake. He had received his orders and was obeying them to the letter.

  "I wonder if Grenfall has heard of my harum-scarum trip toSt. Petersburg," reflected Yetive, making herself comfortable in thecoach after the gates and the multitudes were far behind.

  "I'll go you a box of chocolate creams that we meet him before we get toEdelweiss," ventured Beverly.

  "Agreed," said the princess.

  "Don't say 'agreed,' dear. 'Done' is the word," corrected the Americangirl airily.

  Beverly won. Grenfall Lorry and a small company of horsemen rode up infurious haste long before the sun was in mid-sky. An attempt to depictthe scene between him and his venturesome wife would be a hopelesstask. The way in which his face cleared itself of distress and worry wasa joy in itself. To use his own words, he breathed freely for the firsttime in hours. "The American" took the place of the officer who rodebeside the coach, and the trio kept up an eager, interestingconversation during the next two hours.

  It was a warm, sleepy day, but all signs of drowsiness disappeared withthe advent of Lorry. He had reached Edelweiss late the night before,after a three days' ride from the conference with Dawsbergen. At firsthe encountered trouble in trying to discover what had become of theprincess. Those at the castle were aware of the fact that she hadreached Ganlook safely and sought to put him off with subterfuges. Hestormed to such a degree, however, that their object failed. The resultwas that he was off for Ganlook with the earliest light of day.

  Regarding the conference with Prince Gabriel's representatives, he hadbut little to say. The escaped murderer naturally refused to surrenderand was to all appearances quite firmly established in power oncemore. Lorry's only hope was that the reversal of feeling in Dawsbergenmight work ruin for the prince. He was carrying affairs with a highhand, dealing vengeful blows to the friends of his half-brother andencouraging a lawlessness that s
ooner or later must prove hisundoing. His representatives at the conference were an arrogant,law-defying set of men who laughed scornfully at every proposal made bythe Graustarkians.

  "We told them that if he were not surrendered to our authorities insideof sixty days we would declare war and go down and take him," concluded"The American."

  "Two months," cried Yetive. "I don't understand."

  "There was method in that ultimatum. Axphain, of course, will set up ahowl, but we can forestall any action the Princess Volga mayundertake. Naturally, one might suspect that we should declare war atonce, inasmuch as he must be taken sooner or later. But here is thepoint: before two months have elapsed the better element of Dawsbergenwill be so disgusted with the new dose of Gabriel that it will doanything to avert a war on his account. We have led them to believe thatAxphain will lend moral, if not physical, support to our cause. Givethem two months in which to get over this tremendous hysteria, andthey'll find their senses. Gabriel isn't worth it, you see, and down intheir hearts they know it. They really loved young Dantan, who seems tobe a devil of a good fellow. I'll wager my head that in six weeksthey'll be wishing he were back on the throne again. And just to thinkof it, Yetive, dear, you were off there in the very heart of Axphain,risking everything," he cried, wiping the moisture from his brow.

  "It is just eleven days since I left Edelweiss, and I have had a lovelyjourney," she said, with one of her rare smiles. He shook his headgravely, and she resolved in her heart never to give him another suchcause for alarm.

  "And in the meantime, Mr. Grenfall Lorry, you are blaming me and hatingme and all that for being the real cause of your wife's escapade," saidBeverly Calhoun plaintively. "I'm awfully sorry. But, you must rememberone thing, sir; I did not put her up to this ridiculous trip. She did itof her own free will and accord. Besides, I am the one who met the lionand almost got devoured, not Yetive, if you please."

  "I'll punish you by turning you over to old Count Marlanx, the commanderof the army in Graustark," said Lorry, laughingly. "He's a terribleogre, worse than any lion."

  "Heaven pity you, Beverly, if you fall into his clutches," criedYetive. "He has had five wives and survives to look for a sixth. You seehow terrible it would be."

  "I'm not afraid of him," boasted Beverly, but there came a time when shethought of those words with a shudder.

  "By the way, Yetive, I have had word from Harry Anguish. He and thecountess will leave Paris this week, if the baby's willing, and will bein Edelweiss soon. You don't know how it relieves me to know that Harrywill be with us at this time."

  Yetive's eyes answered his enthusiasm. Both had a warm and gratefulmemory of the loyal service which the young American had rendered hisfriend when they had first come to Graustark in quest of the princess;and both had a great regard for his wife, the Countess Dagmar, who, asYetive's lady in waiting, had been through all the perils of thoseexciting days with them.

  As they drew near the gates of Edelweiss, a large body of horsemen rodeforth to meet them. The afternoon was well on the way to night, and theair of the valley was cool and refreshing, despite the rays of the Junesun.

  "Edelweiss at last," murmured Beverly, her face aglow. "The heart ofGraustark. Do you know that I have been brushing up on my grammar? Ihave learned the meaning of the word 'Graustark,' and it seems soappropriate. _Grau_ is gray, hoary, old; _stark_ isstrong. Old and strong--isn't it, dear?"

  "And here rides the oldest and strongest man in all Graustark--the IronCount of Marlanx," said Yetive, looking down the road. "See--the strangegray man in front there is our greatest general, our craftiest fighter,our most heartless warrior. Does he not look like the eagle or thehawk?"

  A moment later the parties met, and the newcomers swung into line withthe escort. Two men rode up to the carriage and saluted. One was CountMarlanx, the other Colonel Quinnox, of the Royal Guard. The count, leanand gray as a wolf, revealed rows of huge white teeth in his perfunctorysmile of welcome, while young Quinnox's face fairly beamed with honestjoy. In the post that he held, he was but following in the footsteps ofhis forefathers. Since history began in Graustark, a Quinnox had been incharge of the castle guard.

  The "Iron Count," as he sometimes was called, was past his sixtiethyear. For twenty years he had been in command of the army. One had butto look at his strong, sardonic face to know that he was a fearlessleader, a savage fighter. His eyes were black, piercing and never quiet;his hair and close-cropped beard were almost snow-white; his voice washeavy and without a vestige of warmth. Since her babyhood Yetive hadstood in awe of this grim old warrior. It was no uncommon thing formothers to subdue disobedient children with the threat to give them overto the "Iron Count." "Old Marlanx will get you if you're not good," wasa household phrase in Edelweiss. He had been married five times and asmany times had he been left a widower. If he were disconsolate in anyinstance, no one had been able to discover the fact. Enormously rich, asriches go in Graustark, he had found young women for his wives whothought only of his gold and his lands in the trade they made withCupid. It was said that without exception they died happy. Death was ajoy. The fortress overlooking the valley to the south was no more ruggedand unyielding than the man who made his home within its walls. He livedthere from choice and it was with his own money that he fitted up thecommandant's quarters in truly regal style. Power was more to him thanwealth, though he enjoyed both.

  Colonel Quinnox brought news from the castle. Yetive's uncle and aunt,the Count and Countess Halfont, were eagerly expecting her return, andthe city was preparing to manifest its joy in the most exuberantfashion. As they drew up to the gates the shouts of the people came tothe ears of the travelers. Then the boom of cannon and the blare ofbands broke upon the air, thrilling Beverly to the heart. She wonderedhow Yetive could be so calm and unmoved in the face of all this homage.

  Past the great Hotel Regengetz and the Tower moved the gay procession,into the broad stretch of boulevard that led to the gates of the palacegrounds. The gates stood wide open and inviting. Inside was JacobFraasch, the chief steward of the grounds, with his men drawn up inline; upon the walls the sentries came to parade rest; on the plaza theRoyal band was playing as though by inspiration. Then the gates closedbehind the coach and escort, and Beverly Calhoun was safe inside thecastle walls. The "Iron Count" handed her from the carriage at theportals of the palace, and she stood as one in a dream.