by Burnett, May
To Milla’s surprise, she led them to a gallery in the east wing, where the portraits of the Meybrinck ancestors looked down stiffly upon the visitors.
“This one is small but precious.” Frau von Meybrinck stopped in front of a square painting, hardly bigger than a soup plate, with a heavy carved frame of dark wood. “It came to me from my paternal grandmother. One of the best surviving works by Albrecht Dürer. It is yours.”
The picture showed a woman and man facing each other, in bold-coloured, old fashioned clothes. The colours were surprisingly vivid for what Milla guessed was a very old picture, painted on wood rather than canvas. The lines and proportions could only be called masterly. She marvelled how tiny the artist’s brushes must have been, to get so much exact detail onto such a small area. “There was no need, but I thank you, and will cherish the gift in your memory.”
“It will become a valued heirloom in our own family,” Barnaby added with deep appreciation.
“Magnificent!” Professor Matthiess said with enthusiasm.
Dürer… was that the same artist whose engravings she had seen in a Viennese palace? She really must include art history in her studies, perhaps collect some other pieces, after this one.
“Without your help, I would have lost everything,” Frau von Meybrinck brushed aside their thanks, but she seemed pleased that her gift was valued. There was a few minutes’ delay as the canvas was taken down and packed in several layers of soft cloth, covered with oil cloth against humidity, and securely tied with string.
As she watched the packing, Milla wondered where the picture should hang… back in England? Or in her estate in upper Austria, that she had acquired three months earlier? She ought to show it to Barnaby… and the hotel she owned in Parma, as well… to those who had much, apparently more was given all the time.
Yet, a few years ago, she had felt lucky to have enough food on her plate, or a dress without too obvious mending.
Chapter 33
They left the Professor at his hotel and found ‘Monsieur Lambert’ next. It took a few minutes to explain that Barnaby was her fiancé, that he knew everything.
The Frenchman was happy to hear that Frau von Meybrinck was saved from ruin. When he learned that Kepler’s valet was a Prussian officer, however, he frowned heavily. “I had wondered … there was another anonymous note late yesterday. It commanded me to contact the military attaché at the Prussian Embassy after my return to Paris, if I did not want my secret marriage spread all over the sensational papers.”
Milla was not surprised. “And will you?”
“Of course not. To comply with such a demand would lead to treason, and inevitable ruin. No, however awkward it will be, I shall follow your advice, Lady Fenton, and make a clean breast of my affairs to the head of the house.”
“Good luck.”
Barnaby shot the man a sympathetic glance. “After the first shock, it may not be so very bad.”
From the prince’s expression, he did not share that optimistic view. “Madame, you have helped me understand what I was up against, and saved me a great deal of money. Early this morning, Kepler tried to solicit another ten thousand gulden. I temporised. He shall not have another penny from me.”
“Good.”
“Is there anything I can do to show my appreciation, and admiration of you, Lady Fenton?”
“Well,” Milla said, “there is one thing… is it in your power to obtain a pardon for a former Bonapartist spy?”
“Assuredly, but by now most survivors are free and getting on with their lives.”
“This is a special case. He was supposed to have died in Russia, and currently lives in the New World. There is nothing to be gained by pursuing him at this point.”
“What is the name?”
“Colonel Robert Louis Rallien.”
Lambert’s eyes opened wide in astonishment. “What, he is still alive? That is news indeed. He was a legend in his day. The Viper, he was called, for his speed and deadliness.”
Milla regarded him steadily as he pondered her request. Had she just committed a fatal mistake? In any case, the French state had no power over Louis here; he would truly be overseas before anyone could try to arrest him.
“Very well,” Lambert said at last. “It will be easier if I claim it is a posthumous pardon, as a favour to a close relative. A sentimental gesture for his widow – she’s your companion, I believe? It will be best if the Colonel does not return from the dead.”
Milla nodded, glad she did not have to disappear, leave her old identity behind. It had to diminish a person, to slough off so much of one’s past.
Before they parted, she described how the mesmerist’s commands could be undone by a qualified practitioner, and described Professor Matthiess’ results. Lambert listened attentively. “Very good – I shall find someone similar in France, whom I can trust. Since I am leaving imminently, I shall not trouble this Professor, but thank him all the same.”
***
They returned the barouche to the livery stable and walked towards Milla’s lodgings. “Will Kepler have figured out where his funds and papers went?” Barnaby wondered. “He will want to counterattack as soon as possible.”
“Let him.” They had taken adequate precautions. Louis, Veronique, and Marie had left with the money and bearer bonds right after breakfast. By now, these valuables should be safe in the custody of a reputable bank in Munich. The remaining papers Milla had entrusted to the mail, sending the package to her trustee at the Frankfort bank, with instructions to hold them there until she picked them up. Only the sapphires were still at risk.
She wanted to be done with them, with the whole business.
“Komtesse Kornau’s house is only two streets over from mine,” she said to Barnaby. “Let’s fetch the sapphires and find out if she is indeed the owner.”
“But would she be at home on such a pleasant Saturday afternoon?”
“Perhaps not,” Milla said, considering the matter. “Likely, she has been walking in the Rose Garden, and is now taking tea and cake at the Patisserie Lindenhof with some of her friends.”
“Why don’t we do the same? If she’s not there, we can still pass by her house on the way back.”
They fetched the bag with the jewels from its temporary hiding place inside the fireplace. To Milla’s satisfaction, and slight surprise, her deserted lodgings were quiet and undisturbed. Could it be that their enemies had not yet discovered their loss? So much the better. Whatever they tried now, they would be too late.
Her guess had been accurate: the Komtesse was indeed sampling the new varieties of cakes baked this week, chatting with Miss Rogers. At the sight of Milla with Barnaby in tow, they eagerly invited the couple to sit at their table.
“I had heard you had departed our little town, Mr. Winthrop,” Miss Rogers said to Barnaby.
He smiled easily. “Only temporarily. I must always come back to Lady Fenton.”
“Who soon will no longer be Lady Fenton, but Mrs. Winthrop,” Milla announced.
The ladies gasped. “I am so glad!” Miss Rogers said. “I feared you were going to have that dreadful Major Kepler instead.”
Milla smiled. “I have better taste than that.”
“And better sense,” the Komtesse added with a broad smile.
It was time to get down to business. “Somebody told me you are the owner of a sapphire set, Komtesse?”
A shadow crossed the older lady’s face. “No longer, alas.”
Milla pulled the bag with the jewels out of her pocket. “Are these yours, by any chance?”
The Komtesse stared at them, her mouth working silently, her eyes wide.
“Of course they are!” Miss Rogers exclaimed. “I have seen you wear them quite often!”
“There is no necklace,” Milla said. “But, otherwise, the set seems complete. May I ask how you came to mislay it? Will you take them now?”
Hesitantly, the Komtesse took the bag, and examined every piece with care. She exh
aled deeply. “I never expected to see these again. Thank you. How and where did you find them, Lady Fenton?”
“They were recovered with other stolen goods – I would prefer not to go into details. They were stolen, were they not?”
The Komtesse rubbed her chin in perplexity. “I cannot be sure… the doubt has been driving me to distraction. One day, they were missing from my jewel case. But if some thief had broken in, would he not also have taken the pearls, the diamond ring, and my amethyst set? My jewels were all together in a locked strongbox, and I have the only key. The lock was not forced. I have been wondering if perhaps I myself had hidden or given away the sapphires, and could not remember. Luckily the necklace was at my jeweller’s, to repair the fastening. I still have it, so now the set is once more complete.”
“Nonsense, one does not forget such a thing,” Miss Rogers said. “Why did you not immediately denounce the theft?”
“It would have meant suspecting my housekeeper and manservant, and they would leave if I made such accusations. I did not want to upset my household to that extent, but, of course, I still suspected them. It has been a very uncomfortable three weeks, since I noticed the loss. And something… somehow… I felt very reluctant to involve the authorities.”
Milla and Barnaby explained how Kepler and Rabenstein had obtained secrets, signatures, and other valuables by means of mesmerism. “If you want to be certain, consult Professor Matthiess at the Hotel Bitterschwarm, before his departure tomorrow,” Milla recommended. “He can restore your lost memories. They probably ordered you to hand the jewels over yourself, and to forget all about it later.”
The two ladies were flabbergasted, and a little incredulous, so that Milla had to expand on her explanation. By the time they departed with grateful thanks, night was falling. Indoors, the Patisserie was still doing brisk business, as it offered warm meals until ten.
“Marie is unavailable to fetch our dinner tonight. We might have an early one here,” Milla suggested. “They do a nice Tafelspitz.” She could have cooked herself, in a pinch, but there were not enough supplies in her pantry, and on a Saturday evening the local shops were closed.
“Tafelspitz? What’s that?”
“Boiled beef, with various other things. It is quite popular in the region.”
“I am game to try.”
“If you are not terribly hungry, the trout are good as well.”
In the end, they both opted for roast chicken with dumplings and a variety of greens. Several acquaintances passed by their table, and offered congratulations on their betrothal – as Milla had expected, the news was all over Regensbad already.
“Kepler or Rabenstein may turn up any moment,” she told Barnaby with a slight shiver. “Being seen in public with me, announcing our engagement, is tossing down the gauntlet. They will want to know what went wrong, and must surely guess that we were behind the raid.”
“They might want to retaliate tonight. When is Louis coming back?”
“Probably not until tomorrow. It is a long ride to Munich, and the horses will need rest. Besides, on a Saturday, it will have taken time to get a banker to accommodate them.”
“With that much gold, they will have found one,” Barnaby predicted. “Bankers only keep the poor waiting on their schedule. You really are giving everything to them? It is a small fortune.”
“Marie will also receive a share, but less, since she did not risk her neck in a burglary.”
“What about yourself?”
“Oh, I may retain a tangible keepsake, too. And don’t forget the Dürer.”
“Yes, that is priceless.”
There had been titles to several properties in those papers she had sent to her banker; a mill, a forest, a farm. She would look into the circumstances of their acquisition, and decide case by case if they should be returned to their former owners, or if she would hang on to them. “I have no qualms about enriching myself or others at the expense of these criminals. They deserve to be stripped of their entire ill-gotten gains, and since nobody else bothered to do anything about their nefarious activities, are we not entitled to some compensation for our risks?”
Barnaby’s brows creased slightly. “That makes our actions sound almost mercenary.”
“Perhaps, but the occasional gain is not why I chase criminals. I do it for the thrill of the game.” Milla dabbed her chin with the linen napkin. Would he be able to understand what drove her? “Mere socialising without ulterior purpose palled upon me within the first six months of my departure from London. There was a fellow in Innsbruck, after we came up from Italy via the Brenner pass, who sought to trick me. My patience with predatory men was already strained near to breaking through various other incidents… I made it my business to expose him, and he is even now serving five years’ hard labour.”
“Not hanged?”
“No, but had he been, I would not have lost any sleep over it.” She looked at Barnaby challengingly. He should know she was not sensitive, or likely to suffer guilt over dealing misfortune to others. She was loyal to her few friends, but as far as Milla was concerned, everyone else could go to the devil.
He put down his glass. “You are not afraid that one of these fellows will come after you to avenge himself, once he’s served his sentence?”
“Let them try. I am not afraid. After that case in the Tyrol, there were five or six others, including a female, a fake medium in a small town south of Vienna – a spa like this one. Such places, where rich people go to rest and recuperate, draw crooks like magnets.”
He nodded. “I can see how spas might be a fertile hunting ground, offering a varied population of wealthy victims, and a ready-made pretext for joining them.”
Their conversation was interrupted by Frau von Mehlwurm, who looked unwontedly excited, her colour high. “Dear Lady Fenton, have you heard the news about Major Kepler? You will never believe it!”
“No, but please enlighten us!” Milla begged. After introducing Barnaby to the Austrian widow, she invited her to sit down at their table. Frau von Mehlwurm willingly complied. In deference to Barnaby, they switched to French.
“Kepler is arrested, in irons, and Doktor Rabenstein also, together with his female assistant!” Relishing their surprise, she went on, “Indeed, Kepler was taken on the main street just two hours ago, in full view of at least twenty witnesses! I’m told he cursed and struggled as he was shackled by the gendarmes. I wish I had seen it for myself.”
“But how? Why?” Milla exclaimed. How very convenient, but she had not yet informed the authorities of his misdeeds – was this the doing of the French prince, or perhaps Frau von Meybrinck? General Massinger?
“I’m glad, whatever the reason,” Barnaby said. “Have a glass of wine, Ma’am.”
The older woman accepted the glass he held out to her with a nod of thanks, and drank deeply. “You are thoroughly vindicated, Lady Fenton, for having warned the ladies of Regensbad away from the Mental Water Treatment. This afternoon it was performed for the very last time.”
“How so?”
“One of the three patients who had signed up was supposed to be Mr. Walther Rainer, the Bavarian finance minister.” The expression on Frau von Mehlwurm’s face was gleeful.
Milla’s eyes met Barnaby’s in wild surmise. “I have met his wife and children, but had no idea of Mr. Rainer’s position. When you say, ‘supposed to be’, did someone else go in his place?”
“Yes, indeed. Rainer must have received a timely warning, for instead of Mr. Rainer himself, an actor from Munich took his place. Made up to resemble Rainer, wearing a wig! Who would have imagined…”
Milla smiled. “I am glad to hear it.” So this was the reason why Rabenstein and his confederates had been eager to bring Rainer or his wife under their influence…
“There were secret agents hidden in the spa beforehand, who arrested Rabenstein in the middle of the procedure, after they overheard what he commanded his patients to do. He ordered the supposed Mr. Rainer to give u
p his opposition to a certain treaty with Prussia. Treason carries the death penalty.”
“Good heavens. Did they arrest the Major’s valet too? He is a Prussian officer, I believe.”
Frau von Mehlwurm stared at her. “Is he? How could you know? I had no idea. No, from what I heard, the servant left Regensbad precipitately around lunchtime, on horseback. This is the most exciting thing to have happened here since my arrival! But how shocking, that a medical professional should behave so unethically!” The wine was in danger of splashing out of her glass, so energetically did her gestures underline her words.
“Not merely unethically, but criminally,” Barnaby amended. “I have had occasion to observe Rabenstein’s methods, and if he should hang, I, for one, shall not lose any sleep over it.” He grinned at Milla. “This is most welcome news, for I believe these men would have gone on spreading misery if they had not been found out at last. How did the authorities connect Kepler and the Doktor?”
“Rabenstein had ordered his patients to give money to Kepler. With police witnesses ready to testify, their goose is cooked. But who would have thought it? Lady Fenton, when you danced or walked with Kepler, did you have the least premonition that he was a villain? I never liked him much, but this news still surprised me.”
Milla shrugged lightly. “As I told you that other time, I was not as close to the Major as it may have looked. I now suspect that I was also ordered to give money and attention to Kepler when I underwent the treatment.”
“Oh,” the stout lady’s eyes opened wide. “That would make sense. Did you give him money, may I ask? I do hope not!”
“He proposed a scheme, but I had not consented to it yet, nor would have. No, Kepler did not manage to fleece me.” In fact Milla had made eighty gulden off the spurious mine deal. She suppressed a smile at the memory, since she ought to appear shocked and dismayed. It would be best to remain in the role of an innocent bystander, now that events had fallen out so advantageously.