Sally Wentworth - King of the Castle

by King of the Castle

  The Hotel Erlenbach was situated just off the main square, a solid old building with carved wooden balconies and a large oak door that stood invitingly open. As it was still early in the season there was no difficulty in booking a room and a smiling hotelier showed her to a balconied room in the rear of the building with a large, high bed and rich wooden furniture. After unpacking her suitcase and changing into a dress, Lee joined the small group of guests who were making their way down to dinner. This was served in a quaint, beamed dining-room where she sat alone at a small table by a window that looked out over the valley towards the distant snow-capped peaks of the Alps.

  Her fellow guests seemed to be a mixture of people passing through, commercial travellers, and a few hardy types on walking holidays. As none of them appeared to be English, Lee had only her beautifully cooked meal to concentrate on and had soon finished. There was little point in lingering, so she went out to make her telephone call to Richard; he should have left the Law Courts by now and be at home in the flat he shared with two other junior barristers. Herr Gruber, the proprietor, contacted the operator for her, but Lee was disappointed to find that there was a delay in placing calls to London.

  'Perhaps, Fraulein, you would care to wait in the bar?' the hotelier suggested. 'There are magazines in English for you to look at and I will be sure to let you know as soon as your call comes through.'

  There were already several people in the bar when Lee went in, mostly hotel guests, but also a few groups of villagers enjoying a social evening. Over in one corner an old man played an accordion, not loudly, but as a pleasant background to the talk and laughter. Finding herself an empty table in a quiet corner, Lee ordered a drink from the young waiter and looked around her. Against one wall was a huge, now empty, fireplace that she was sure must give out a roasting heat in the winter when the hotel was full of skiers, and decorating the old dark-panelled walls there were innumerable cow-bells suspended on thick leather straps patterned with brass studs. The atmosphere was warm and friendly, and Lee was glad that she had decided to wait here instead of in her room.

  The English magazines were mostly tourist brochures with some wonderful photographs of the Tyrol, and Lee thoroughly enjoyed looking at them, determining to spend a proper holiday here arid really see all the sights some indeterminate time in the future. Seeing all the maps on a nearby shelf, she realised that Ausbach must be a centre for walkers and hikers who were content to explore the foothills of the smaller mountain slopes rather than climb the higher peaks. The brochures exhausted, she casually took one of the maps and found it to be a large-scale plan of the district. One of the advantages of a map was that it could be understood no matter what language it was printed in, and Lee had soon picked out the village and was searching diligently to see if she could find the chalet her great-uncle had left her. As she had no idea in which direction it was situated it took her some time and she had almost come to the conclusion that it was too small to be marked, when she finally came upon it.

  The Chalet Alpenrose. It was hardly any wonder that it had been difficult to find, for it was about three miles from the village itself and there was no road within half a mile of it, only the dotted line of a track or path leading towards it and then veering off for another half mile or so before crossing the closely drawn rows of lines that denoted a steep rise in ground to the outline of a large building marked as 'Schloss Reistoven'

  Schloss, Lee mused; that must mean castle. Once or twice on her journey here she had glimpsed the far turrets of an ancient castle set atop lofty crags of rock, and from the markings on the map this Schloss Reistoven appeared to be the same. She wondered if the castle was a ruin or whether it was still in one piece, and, if so, whether it was open to tourists. It would be interesting to see a medieval fortress and would help to pass the time before Herr Kreuz returned from Vienna. But now her eyes returned eagerly to the little dot that was the Chalet Alpenrose. She smiled to herself; to think that she actually owned that little black square—it was still almost unbelievable! If only the road had gone anywhere near it she could have gone to see it by herself tomorrow, although she supposed that the solicitor would have the key and she wouldn't be able to see the inside. But there must be some way to reach it even if she parked the car and walked. Carefully she studied the terrain, noting that the chalet was sited on a piece of rising ground overlooking a valley guarded by trees. But of course, if she could hire a horse she could reach the chalet easily and have a pleasant ride through the countryside. Why hadn't she thought of that before?

  So intently was she studying the map that Herr Gruber had to call her name twice before she realised that her call to Richard was through.

  'Lee, are you all right? No accidents on the way?'

  'No, of course not. I drove very carefully.'

  'What did the solicitor have to say?'

  Lee decided that a little prevarication would do no harm. 'We're not going to discuss anything until I've seen the chalet. I'm going to have a look at it tomorrow,' she added, being now fully determined to do just that.

  'Well, don't forget what I told you. Don't let yourself be pushed into doing anything in a hurry.'

  'No, I won't,' Lee assured him a trifle impatiently. 'I'll call you again when I have some news.'

  'All right. Take care of yourself, darling.'

  'And you. 'Bye!'

  Still clutching the map, Lee made her way to her room intending to study it further, but once there she pushed open the door on to the balcony to look out at the night and then caught her breath in wonder. The map forgotten, she sat on a chair, leaned her elbows on the carved balcony and let the next hour slip away as she watched the snow on the high peaks gradually colour and then turn a bright, fluorescent pink as the sun slowly set behind the mountains.

  The clamour of cow-bells woke her early the next morning, the unusual sound bringing her wide awake as the noise and roar of traffic would never have done. Pulling on a wrap, Lee pushed open the wooden doors on to the balcony and leaned out to gaze her fill at the bright spring morning. Although it was barely six o'clock the sun was already quite warm and was lick ing the dew from the grass and hedges. The air was filled with the rich scents of flowers that filled the boxes on her balcony; bees hummed in and out of nodding Canterbury bells, their buzzing lost in the sound of the cow-bells as the herds meandered their way back up the hill sides after the morning milking.

  Lee felt an irresistible urge to be out in the open, breathing the good clean air and feeling the sun warm upon her back. Quickly she showered in the tiny bathroom opening off her room and changed into a clean shirt and comfortable faded jeans, then ran downstairs to breakfast, impatient not to lose a minute of this lovely day. She was one of the first guests down and soon finished the still warm croissants spread with home-made butter and jam and the little jug of coffee.

  Herr Gruber was looking through the morning papers when she sought him out at the reception desk.

  'Good morning.' She greeted him with the smile that lit her face.

  Although rather a taciturn man, he smiled in return at her youth and vitality. 'Guten Morgen, Fraulein Can I help you?'

  'Yes, please. Is there anywhere around here where I can hire a horse?'

  Herr Gruber's eyebrows rose at this unexpected request and he pulled at his full, flowing Franz Josef moustache in some perplexity. 'Well now, let me think.

  There are no stables where you can hire an animal, Fraulein, but I have an old friend, Hans Schneider, who has a farm outside the village and who has a riding horse. He may be prepared to let you borrow the animal if he does not require it.'

  'Is he on the phone? Could you ask him for me?' Lee asked eagerly.

  'I will try,' Fraulein.' He dialled the number and held quite a long conversation with his friend before putting down the receiver and nodding at Lee. 'Ja, Fraulein Summers, Hans says he does not need the horse today and will be happy to lend it to you, if you are sure you can manage it. It is a—how do you say i
t —a young, fiery horse. Do you understand?'

  'Yes, I understand. I'll go and take a look at him. Would you fix me up a sandwich lunch to take with me, please?'

  Lee ran upstairs to change her sandals for more suitable shoes and then collected her packed lunch from the proprietor. He had drawn her a little sketch showing the way to the farm and she also took along the map she had found in the bar.

  Hans Schneider was waiting for her in his stable-yard and a boy brought out the horse for her to see. It was a young chestnut with flowing mane and tail and a long white blaze down his head. Gently but confidently, Lee went up to him and began talking to him softly before stroking his neck. He pranced and snorted a little, but when she pulled some sugar lumps stolen from the hotel dining-room from her pocket, he deigned to overcome his haughtiness and lowered his proud head to eat from her hand.

  The farmer nodded and smiled. 'Jawohl, is good,' he said, and added instructions to the boy in German to saddle the chestnut.

  Soon Lee was riding the horse easily along the edge of the pine woods on the lower slopes of the hills, her lunch and the map safely stowed away in a bag hung from the saddle. Having been brought up in the country she had learnt to ride from an early age and felt perfectly at home in the saddle, although she had had little practice since she had been going out with Richard. As he did not ride himself, Lee had felt obliged to accompany him on rounds of golf or play tennis with him whenever they had spent a weekend or holiday at her home.

  When the onion-shaped dome of the village church came in sight she paused to take out the map and to trace her route up into the mountains. Ausbach was soon found, and, having a good geographical memory, Lee was able to pick out the way that she would need to take to bypass the village and reach the chalet. The route would take her through the forest and above the castle and from there north-eastwards along the track that led to the chalet. Carefully she memorised the way she must take, then put the map away and urged the horse towards the forest and distant mountain peaks.

  As the morning passed the glistening sunshine became more intense and she was glad to ride under the shade of the evergreen trees. The horse picked his way surely through the undergrowth, the fallen twigs and small branches making sharp cracking sounds as the weight of horse and rider snapped them in two. The ground began to rise more steeply now so that once or twice Lee dismounted to lead the horse up the steeper parts, and several times they forded, icy streams. Rabbits and one or two deer scuttled away at their approach, but of other humans there was no sign; she was alone and content to be so.

  At last they were above the vastness of the forest out on to the mountainside where the trees were less thick, and here Lee paused to take in her giant's view of the valley below. Ausbach looked like a toy village from here, like a collection of doll's houses waiting for little girls to come and play with them.

  'Come on, boy, we should be there soon.' The horse pricked up his ears and started off again. After a further twenty minutes of steady climbing Lee gave a gasp of surprised pleasure, for there, in a clearing, was a small hut almost hidden among the trees. It was solidly built of logs and sheltered on two sides by an angle in the side of the mountain. Lee slipped from the saddle and tied the horse to a nearby tree before going to take a closer look. There were stacks of newly chopped wood on one side of the sturdy door and for a moment she wondered uneasily if anyone lived there. Well, there was only one way to find out.

  She stepped up to the door and knocked as loudly as she could. She waited breathlessly, but the only sound was that of the horse gently cropping the grass. Slowly she put up her hand and lifted the latch, feeling rather ridiculously like Little Red Riding Hood. But there was no wolf awaiting her, only an empty hut furnished rather sparsely with two bunk beds on the side nearest the mountain, a table and two chairs and a small cupboard near a big, pot-bellied stove. It must have provided a welcome haven to anyone lost or stranded on the mountain in winter, but on this sunny day it was less than inviting and Lee soon came out into the open again. Nearby a stream had been partially dammed to create a small pool, and she took advantage of it to water the horse before unsaddling him and sitting down beside it to eat her lunch.

  The ride had given her an appetite, so she opened her lunch bag to find crispy rolls, hard-boiled eggs and fruit. She began to eat hungrily and it was several minutes before the flashes of light caught her eye. They didn't come from the village, but from a building about a mile further east; a building whose towers and battlements soared gracefully into the sky, a fairytale castle set like a jewel in this lovely countryside. This must be the Schloss Reistoven she had seen marked on the map, she realised. The brief flash of light came again, as if the sun was reflecting on some bright moving object; not a window because it wasn't big enough, and there appeared to be two reflections close together. They seemed to be coming from a room in one of the towers.

  Hastily Lee scrambled to her feet, her lunch forgotten, and ran to her saddlebag where she took out the small but powerful pair of binoculars that she had brought with her in case she saw an unusual bird or animal. Running back to the pool, she quickly focussed them on the turret where she had seen the flashes. Yes, she was right! Someone was watching her through their own binoculars. For a moment the twin points of light were perfectly still as if whoever it was had been taken aback to see her returning the scrutiny, then they disappeared. Lee saw a brief movement behind the window, but could make out no details of her observer. . For several minutes she continued to watch the tower, but there was no further sign of life and eventually she sat down by the stream again and finished her lunch. The scent of alpine flowers hung heavy on the air, butterflies flickered at the water's edge and birds called to one another as they busily fed their young. Lee leant back on the bank and felt the sun warming her like a blanket. Before long she was fast asleep, like a modern Titania, alone but for the animals and birds around her.

  Perhaps it was some primeval awareness of danger, perhaps only a shadow blocking out the sun that brought her suddenly and rudely awake. She opened her eyes and saw a man standing over her! Instantly she sat up, pieces of grass still clinging to her dark curls. Then, with an intense feeling of relief, she recognised the man she had met at the garage yesterday, the man who had directed her to the solicitor's house.

  He towered over her, his expression unreadable as he looked down at her. 'Ah, the young English lady.' Then, seeing her eyes still wide with alarm, he added, 'I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you,' and reached down to help her to scramble to her feet. .

  'It's—it's all right, really. It was just being woken up so suddenly.' The shock had left Lee feeling strangely breathless and she could hear her heart beating in her chest.

  The big man smiled slightly as he said, 'I came to order off a trespasser and I find instead a Sleeping Beauty.'

  'A trespasser? Is this land private, then?'

  'I'm afraid so, Fraulein. You are well over half a mile on to the Von Reistoven estates.'

  Flushing slightly, Lee said, 'I'm sorry, I had no idea. There weren't any fences or hedges and it didn't say anything on the map—or at least I didn't think it did.'

  'You intended to come this way? You're not lost?'

  'Oh, no, I was making my way across to the other side of the castle, but I found the hut and the stream and it all looked so—so enchanting that I just had to stop,' she explained. 'But how did you know I was here? I didn't…' Then she broke off, remembering how someone had watched her from the castle turret.

  As if reading her thoughts the stranger said, 'You must forgive me, Fraulein, but often we get tourists wandering through the woods who do a great deal of harm to the environment, so we try to discourage them as much as possible.' He paused. 'But you said that you were on your way somewhere?'

  'Yes, to the Chalet Alpenrose. I'll be getting along now.'

  Lee went to turn away, but he raised a hand to detain her. 'Then I was right in my surmise yesterday; you are the niece of Herr
Canning?'

  Eyebrows raised in surprise, Lee answered, 'His great- niece, yes. But how did you know?'

  'I knew that Herr Canning had left his—er— property to a young English girl and I knew that Herr Kreuz was his solicitor, so when you asked me the way to his office I put two and two together and…'

  'And came up with the right answer,' Lee finished for him. 'Did you know my great-uncle well, Herr…?'

  'Your pardon, Fraulein.' Slowly, his eyes on her face, he said, 'Max von Reisioven.' As he introduced himself he gave her a small bow that somehow didn't seem at all incongruous when he did it.

  'Von Reistoven? But isn't that the name of the castle I saw marked on the map?'

  'The Schloss Reistoven, yes. You can see it quite clearly from here—especially if you look through binoculars,' he added wryly.

  Lee glanced quickly up at him, but saw only amusement in his eyes. 'It was your own fault, you started watching me first,' she retorted with a smile, and then turned to look again at the fairytale castle. 'Do you really live there?'

  'Why, yes.'

  Lee swung round to stare at him. 'You don't—you don't own that lovely place?'

  He smiled rather enigmatically. 'It belongs to my family. But you said that you were on your way to your own inheritance. What did you think of it?' he asked carefully, his eyes again on her face.

  'I haven't seen it yet. Herr Kreuz is away in Vienna and not expected back for a couple of days. That's why I'm going there now. I haven't got the keys, of course, but at least I'll be able to look at the chalet from the outside.'

  'So you haven't yet seen Herr Kreuz,' Max von Reistoven said, almost to himself. Then, rather as if he had made up his mind about something, he added, 'May I then be permitted to guide you the rest of the way? It's easy enough to find, but I wouldn't want you to fall in with any of our foresters—they have orders to turn any tourists away.'