A gun flashed again, this time from the window. It was Jan’s parting shot, fired almost at random towards Mack in a last attempt to carry out his threat to kill the traitor statesman. By its light they saw that the officer who had tripped over the chair had cannoned into his companion as he fell, and that they were sprawled in a cursing heap together.
By the same flash de Richleau and his friends saw something else. Right opposite them, halfway up the broad staircase at the far end of the lounge, two men were now standing; both had guns in their hands, and from their point of vantage they dominated the whole room.
Marie Lou’s heart missed a beat: Richard stifled a cry of surprise; the Duke’s satanic eyebrows shot up in amazement. An instant later, as darkness blotted out the scene again, all three of them momentarily rejected the evidence of their sense, believing that their eyesight had played them a trick. It seemed unbelievable that those two familiar figures, the big man, who gripped his gun so confidently, and the little one, whose obvious distaste for his made him hold it with such awkwardness, could have arrived unsummoned in Poland and found their way undiscovered to the upper floor of the Lubieszow château.
‘Did—did you see what I did?’ gasped Richard in de Richleau’s ear.
‘Mon Dieu, yes!’ breathed the Duke, flashing on the lights, which revealed to the whole startled company the silent, watchful figures of Rex van Ryn and Simon Aron.
‘That’ll be enough shooting for the present,’ Rex boomed, giving his big automatic a swift, threatening sweep from side to side across the crowd of astonished, upturned faces below him. ‘Drop your guns on the floor, all of you. Quick now! I’m in a mood to take a little target practice on any character who disobeys me.’
Although he spoke in English his tone and gesture were quite enough to convey his meaning to those who did not understand his actual words. Von Geisenheim, as shrewd a judge as anyone there of when a situation warranted taking chances, quietly laid his pistol on a nearby table. But the sullen-faced Pole that de Richleau had partnered at bridge half-turned and made to raise his weapon.
Instantly Rex’s automatic cracked, the Pole’s pistol clattered to the floor, and with a gasp of pain he clutched a shattered wrist.
‘I warned you,’ said Rex, this time speaking in French. ‘Put your guns on the floor, or next time I’ll shoot to kill.’
With scowling looks but making no further protest, the antagonists hastened to obey him, as he added: ‘Go to it, Simon. Collect the arsenal.’
De Richleau stepped forward. ‘One moment, Rex. Stay where you are, Simon, and keep the terrace door covered, in case any of them tries to get away. I’ll attend to their disarmament.’ Even as he spoke he had relieved ‘Colonel Moninszko’ of his automatic and passed it to Richard with the words: ‘Stay by the door and see that we’re not interrupted from the hall.’
Quietly but swiftly he collected all the weapons and, keeping one for himself, deposited the rest on a small table just outside on the terrace. Stepping back into the room, he addressed the two newcomers with a smile.
‘I need hardly say how delighted I am to see you both. Your arrival could not possibly have been more opportune, and I can scarely wait to hear how you accomplished it. Now that you, Rex, with Richard’s help, can easily control the situation, perhaps Simon can come down and help me round up the remainder of the servants.’ Turning towards Marie Lou, he added: ‘It’s not the first time that you’ve handled a gun, Princess, so perhaps you would give us your assistance by guarding these windows on to the terrace while Simon and I are away.’
As Simon and Marie Lou crossed the room, Mack suddenly stepped forward and spoke with swift acidity. ‘It seems, Duke, that you are in control here now. Need I remind you that several people have been wounded? Surely you will allow us to give them immediate attention?’
These swift interchanges had occupied barely two minutes, and, although it seemed much longer, it was less than five since the shooting had started. De Richleau’s quick ear had caught the sound of cautiously approaching feet. He guessed that some of the chauffeurs must have been wakened by the shots and that the bolder of them were coming to see what had happened. As most of them were soldiers, they might be carrying arms, so, if this unexpected coup were not to fail through a turning of the tables, swift action was necessary.
He gave a quick glance round the casualties of the recent fracas. Anna Lubieszow lay still, slumped in the chair where she had fallen. The Duke had seen too many dead bodies in his time to be mistaken as to the meaning of her lolling head and loosely huddled limbs. Bauer had been knocked out by a bullet that had seared his bristling scalp, but he was now groaning loudly and evidently about to come to. The Pole whose wrist Rex had shattered was cursing under his breath and sweating with pain, while one of his companions was already staunching the flow of blood from the wound with a napkin from the silver salver upon which stood the bottles of champagne.
‘I fear that Madame Anna is past our aid,’ de Richleau replied sharply, ‘and the other two will come to no harm through waiting. Stay where you are, everyone. Come on, Simon.’
As Marie Lou snatched up the smallest pistol from the collection on the little table, the Duke and Simon hurried away in the direction of the now clearly audible footsteps.
The chauffeurs proved easier to deal with than they had anticipated. There were only three men in the little party that came on at the end of the terrace, and none of them was carrying a gun. De Richleau spoke to them in Polish and promptly marched them back whence they had come.
At the stable gates they found seven still less courageous spirits who had also been roused at the sound of the shots, but remained there, half-dressed, conjecturing in anxious whispers on the possible cause of the shooting. Under the threat of the guns the whole party was herded back to the house, taken down to an inner cellar and locked in there.
‘Stay here, Simon,’ said the Duke, ‘and put a bullet through the door if they attempt to break out; I am going in search of some female companionship for them.’
A quarter of an hour later he returned, shepherding a dozen scared women servants in front of him, including the old cook whom he had terrified into collecting all the others, under pain of the direst penalties if he learned later that she had overlooked even the humblest scullery-maid.
The women were locked in with the chauffeurs and grooms; then their captors rolled a great cider barrel, of which there were a number in the outer cellar, against the door, and, having wedged it there, went upstairs again.
‘I think that’s the lot,’ murmured the Duke. ‘All the indoor men servants appear to have been rounded up by the Baron just as they were about to go to bed, to serve the champagne; so they are still with the rest of the party in the lounge.’
As they hurried back to the terrace, he went on:
‘The next thing is for us to let you and Rex know what has been going on here and to hold a council of war. That won’t be any too easy, as two of our party will have to keep the prisoners covered all the time, but I think I know how to arrange matters.’
In the lounge the scene remained unaltered, except that Major Bauer was now sitting scowling in a chair, and Rex had seated himself for greater comfort on the top step of the stairs.
‘We’ve collected all the servants and locked them in the cellar,’ the Duke announced, glancing up at Rex. ‘All well here?’
‘Yep. Not a crack out of any of ‘em.’
‘Good. Now, I’m going to have a short talk with Simon out here on the terrace, but we’ll both be with you if there’s the least sign of trouble.’ Turning to Marie Lou, he went on: ‘We’ll take over the French windows now, Princess. I want you to go upstairs and sit down behind Rex, so as not to interfere with his freedom of movement. Then tell him as briefly as you can what led up to the shooting. If you keep your voice low they won’t hear much you say down here—and, in any case, they know most of the story already. Richard, you had better remain where you are for the time bein
g.’
Moving a few paces away from the window and perching himself on the stone balustrade, from which he could still see most of the well-lit room, he said to Simon in a low voice:
‘Now, my son. Tell me how you managed to arrive here so opportunely.’
Simon stooped his bird-like head and half-smothered a chuckle with the palm of his hand. ‘Quite simple, really. Seeing the way things were moving, I cut short my holiday and got back to England last Wednesday. Very fond of Monte, but not fond enough to want to get caught there when war breaks out. Old Pellinore ‘phoned me Saturday morning; made me cut an engagement to lunch with him. He seemed to think you were in a muddle. You know how I hate muddles. Didn’t want to be mixed up in it a bit. But I dined with Rex that evening. He’d cut short his holiday to get back to London, too, and he seemed to think we ought to take a trip to Poland—just to see what was going on.’
‘Which, being interpreted,’ smiled the Duke, ‘means that you got hold of Rex just as soon as you could, and the two of you came dashing to our rescue in his plane?’
‘Well, more or less,’ Simon admitted with a jerky nod. ‘Pellinore didn’t say much about what the Poles were up to, but he was definite enough that you’d got on to something pretty big and—er—hinted that you’d got into a bit of a spot in consequence. Even with Pellinore behind us we couldn’t get visas till Monday afternoon; but since then we’ve flown half round Europe to avoid coming down in German territory, and we landed at Pinsk about six o’clock this evening. Soon as we could hire a car we came on here. That’s all there is to it.’
‘So the explanation is really quite simple. I might have guessed it. But how on earth did you manage to get into this house and upstairs, unseen?’
‘Well, I’ll tell you. Pellinore seemed to think you were more or less under arrest, so we—er—decided not to announce ourselves. Left the car in the Woods half a mile away, waited till dark, then walked up to the house with the idea of snooping round a bit. We saw through the lighted windows that the Baron was throwing a party, but couldn’t see you. Didn’t like to risk coming too close before we’d found out a bit more how the form was.’
‘As a matter of fact, I must have been out in the garden myself just then,’ interjected the Duke. ‘I was in the shrubbery talking to Jan Lubieszow.’
‘I see. Anyhow, we thought they’d probably got you locked up somewhere. Went round to the front of the house, found the door unbolted and no one about—so we slipped in. Seemed a good opportunity to have a look round upstairs while the party was in full swing. Back stairs creaked enough to wake the dead, but it brought us out on the main landing, and just at that moment the fireworks began. Now let’s have your end of the story.’
De Richleau briefly outlined the events that had led up to the recent affray. When he had done Simon nodded.
‘Seems you’re pretty well through here, then. Next thing’s to get out of the country. ‘Fraid we’ll have to abandon Rex’s plane—not big enough to take us all; and anyhow, when we landed he had to turn her in for a minor repair, so he couldn’t even fly Marie Lou out till after tomorrow. Luckily the car we’ve got is a big one, though—easily hold five. Best thing would be for me to go and get it. Then Rex and I will take care of the crowd while you others pack. When you’re ready we’ll take Mack and his friends down to the cellar, lock them in with the servants and beat it to the frontier. Hungary’s the best place to make for. Had a good look at the map on the way here. It’s all of three hundred miles, but with four of us driving in turns we should get there well before midday tomorrow.’
De Richleau shook his head. ‘I’m afraid it’s not going to be quite as easy as all that. Lucretia is still in Warsaw, and we daren’t risk leaving her behind. Mack is quite capable of arresting her and holding her as a hostage, then we’d be in a pretty mess. No, one of us must go to Warsaw and fetch her back here before we make our break for the frontier.’
‘I say! That’s a nasty one!’ Simon exclaimed. ‘Hadn’t thought of that. It’s a good eight hours’ drive to Warsaw—sixteen there and back. Couldn’t get her here till tomorrow afternoon, and we can hardly hope to keep all these people under the counter without interference till then. There’ll be telephone calls, postmen, village people turning up with stuff for the kitchen, and goodness knows what.’
‘No, but we could hold them till morning, and whoever goes to fetch Lucretia should have got her and be well out of Warsaw on their way back by then.’
‘We’ll have to fix a secret rendezvous—some place where the Warsaw party can join the rest of us tomorrow afternoon.’
‘That’s the idea,’ agreed the Duke.
‘Save time if the Warsaw party headed south instead of coming back here. Whoever stays could pinch a car from the garage, and leave at dawn, also heading south. The two parties could rendezvous in Lwow tomorrow night—or even nearer the Hungarian border.’
De Richleau considered for a moment, then spoke softly again. ‘No, Simon. I don’t like it. The hunt will be up pretty soon after our party leaves here tomorrow morning. Two cars would mean a double chance of some of us being captured, especially those in the stolen car, because a description will be issued of that. Again, their first guess will be that we’re making for Hungary, so for the next few days a sharper watch will be kept for us in the Lwow area than anywhere else. The one thing they will never expect is that any of us would remain in the neighbourhood of Lubieszow or, when they learn that Lucretia has left Warsaw, that she is on her way back here.’
‘You’re for lying up somewhere in the woods near here, then?’
‘Yes. There’s a forester’s hut only about two miles away that Richard, Marie Lou and I passed when we were out riding on Saturday. It is on the opposite side of the house to the village, and well away from either of the roads that run through the estate, so it would serve excellently.’
‘Then either Richard or you will have to go to Warsaw. Neither Rex nor I would ever be able to find it.’
‘True. I had better go, and Richard can guide the rest of you to the forester’s hut tomorrow. About holding this crowd, though. These people have much more initiative than the servants, and might try breaking out of the cellar by forcing up the floorboards of one of the ground-floor rooms. Much better keep them here in sight at the point of a gun for the night, then lock them in the cellar just before leaving in the morning. You go in now and take his place while I have a word with him.’
The exchange was quickly made, and, having told Richard how Rex and Simon had succeeded in arriving at such a lucky moment, de Richleau outlined his proposal.
‘It sounds as good a bet as any,’ said Richard thoughtfully, ‘except for one thing. You must stay here while I go to Warsaw and collect Lucretia.’
With a quick gesture he forestalled the protest the Duke would have made and went on: ‘Surely you realise that, as you’re the only one of us who speaks Polish, it’s essential for you to stay here? Otherwise, who is to deal with any early bird that happens to come up on business from the village, or answer the telephone if an emergency call comes through for Mack in the middle of the night?’
‘Yes, I hadn’t thought of that,’ admitted the Duke. ‘But how about Marie Lou? Naturally, neither of you would wish to be separated at a time like this if it can possibly be avoided. Shall you take her with you?’
‘No, I don’t think so,’ Richard replied, after only a momentary hesitation. ‘It will be the devil of a long drive, and there is no point in tiring her unnecessarily.’
De Richleau did not press the point, as he knew quite well what was at the back of Richard’s mind. Although neither of them had mentioned it, both realised that whoever went to Warsaw would be in much more immediate danger during the journey back than those who had already hidden themselves in the forester’s hut.
‘I tell you what, though,’ Richard continued. ‘I’d like to take one of the others, if you can spare him. With two of us driving alternately we’ll make the trip muc
h faster than I could alone, and an hour gained on the run in might make all the difference in getting clear of the city again before the police are warned to keep a look-out for us.’
‘I agree entirely. Take whomever you like.’
‘I’ll take Simon. He’s been in Warsaw before, so he’ll be more use in helping me find the way to Jan’s house.’
De Richleau’s grey eyes twinkled. Rex was a far finer driver, but Richard was leaving him deliberately, because he would also be of much more use at Lubieszow than Simon if the captives mutinied and attempted to break out during the night. Again, however, he did not argue, as he knew that it would be no light undertaking to keep some twenty people, exclusive of the servants who were locked in the cellar, under control for seven or eight hours.
‘Thanks, Richard,’ he said quietly. ‘I can certainly do with Rex here. Now, you mustn’t waste a moment. If we lock the door leading into the hall we shan’t need a guard on it, and I can remain here at the terrace entrance.’
As they entered the room again, Mack stepped forward. ‘How long do you propose to keep up this farce?’ he snapped at the Duke.
‘Just as long as it suits us to do so,’ de Richleau replied imperturbably.
‘It’s an outrage!’ went on the Polish statesman with rising anger. ‘How dare you hold us like this! I demand that you should restore our liberty of action immediately.’
‘Your Excellency has only yourself to blame. Your present situation differs little from that in which you placed me and my friends a few nights ago.’ The Duke’s glance shifted to the Germans. ‘I have an idea, too, that in due course certain other people will also learn that in the long run it does not pay to set the example of assuming the arbitrary powers of a dictator.’
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