Now Alex’s pale cheeks flushed too. ‘Well, so what if she isn’t a proper governess?’ he snapped back. ‘I don’t want a proper governess. I couldn’t care less about her spectacles, or what languages she speaks. Until she came I didn’t have the first idea what going to school would be like – what to say, or what to do, or how I was supposed to manage it. I don’t know anything about boys’ boarding schools. I don’t even know any other boys! I’m always just stuck here, with you !’ Anna shrank back, hurt, as Alex went on: ‘But thanks to Miss Carter, now I actually know what school will be like. You haven’t the first idea how I’ve loathed the thought of going, but now I won’t look like such a stupid fool when I get there. She’s the best thing that’s happened to us for ages – can’t you see that?’
Anna stared at him in surprise. She’d always thought she knew everything about Alex, but she’d never had the slightest idea that he had been dreading going away to school. It struck her as so horribly unfair that Alex, who didn’t want to go to school must leave; whilst she, who would have given anything for such an opportunity, must stay behind without him.
But that wasn’t important now, she reminded herself in a hurry. It was what she’d discovered about Miss Carter that really mattered. ‘I know you like her, Alex,’ she tried to say more gently. ‘But if she’s sneaking around, snooping through the Count’s private things, it means she’s untrustworthy. She could be part of a plot! For all we know, she could be working with those people who oppose the Crown.’
She could not bring herself to say more, but Alex understood what she meant. ‘That’s an awful thing to say!’ he flashed back at once. ‘Whatever you may think of her, you can’t accuse Miss Carter of being involved in something like what happened to our parents. She’d never hurt us! She cares about us!’ He frowned, and gave her a sudden, scornful look. ‘Besides, I don’t see how you can criticise her for snooping when you were the one following her around in the middle of the night. If you ask me you’re the one behaving like a spy.’
His voice was cold, and Anna took a step back. Alex had never looked at her like that before – as though he was staring deeply inside her, and didn’t much like what he saw there. He finished: ‘Now go away and let me go back to sleep!’
He rolled over and pulled up the covers, in a huff. For a moment, Anna stared at his curled-up shape under the eiderdown, and then she turned and stormed out of the room.
It was still early; not knowing quite what else to do, she went back into her own room to wait for the gong to sound for breakfast. One of the maids had already been in to make her bed and draw back the curtains: now, Anna stood restlessly, looking over the view of dark green forest, slate-grey lake and, in the distance, the chilly peaks of the mountains. It was exactly the same view as always, but everything seemed different since last night. There was something in the air, almost like the first breath of cold autumn wind, although it was only June. Or perhaps it was more like the feeling just before they went away to Elffburg, trunks packed in the hallway and carriages waiting outside. It was the feeling that something was going to happen. A crow was pecking at the lawn below: as she watched, it turned its head as if to look at her, and then took flight, outlined like a shadow against the sky.
She stood there looking out until she heard the sound of the gong. As she hurried downstairs, she realised that she had to tell the Countess what she had seen. It didn’t matter if she were scolded for creeping about the castle late at night, or even if Alex were furious with her for making accusations about Miss Carter. She had to let the Countess know that the governess could not be trusted. What would happen to Miss Carter, she wondered uneasily – would she be sent away in disgrace?
But when she came to the Breakfast Room, she saw to her surprise that the Countess was not there. The Countess always had breakfast with them, but today it was Miss Carter who was pouring coffee from the silver pot. Beside her, Alex was feeding Würstchen with a bit of bacon – something he loved, but was never normally allowed. Anna stopped still. ‘Where’s the Countess?’ she blurted out.
‘Good morning, Your Highness,’ said Miss Carter cheerfully. ‘The Count and Countess are attending to some urgent business this morning.’ She patted the seat next to her. ‘Come and sit down. Would you like some coffee?’
Anna stayed where she was. ‘No thank you,’ she said coldly.
Miss Carter looked at her in surprise. ‘Is there something the matter? Are you feeling unwell?’ She got up and made as if to put her hand on Anna’s forehead, but Anna pulled away. She didn’t want Miss Carter to touch her. She could feel Alex scowling at her and, all at once, she darted out of the room and back up the stairs, towards the Count and Countess’s sitting room.
At the door, she almost collided with Karl: ‘Your Highness, where are you off to in such a hurry this morning?’ he asked. Then, realising where Anna was headed: ‘No … no … you mustn’t disturb the Countess. Her Ladyship is very busy –’
But Anna had already burst through the sitting-room door. The Count and Countess were sitting close together, surrounded by a spill of papers and talking in urgent voices. As Anna came flying in, the Countess looked up. ‘Princess Anna! What are you doing? You know you should never enter a room without knocking! You must remember that a princess should always have perfect manners!’
‘I … I’m sorry, but I need to speak with you – it’s important! It’s about Miss Carter!’ Anna blurted out. But even as she spoke, her eye was drawn to the newspapers that were spread across the Count’s desk and she fell abruptly silent. The headlines screamed out at her – ARNOVIA ON THE BRINK OF INVASION! TROOPS AT THE BORDER! NEW GERMAN THREAT! – before the Count hurriedly whisked them out of her sight.
‘Whatever it is, I’m afraid it will have to wait,’ said the Countess gravely. ‘We have some very important business to attend to. Now hurry along to the schoolroom.’
Too shocked by what she had seen to say anything else, Anna did as she was told.
CHAPTER NINE
Wilderstein Castle, Arnovia
The rest of the morning dragged horribly. In the schoolroom, Anna refused to meet Miss Carter’s eye. Her mind kept running over everything that she had seen: the governess’s hands, rifling through the Count’s desk; the sneering face of the new footman; and most of all those headlines in the newspapers, sharp and shocking as the report of a gun.
She wished she could talk to Alex, but for once, Miss Carter seemed determined to keep them focused on lessons, making them draw maps of Europe and label the capital cities, and then giving them a French test. She was reading aloud to them from a book she had brought from England called The Prisoner of Zenda when the door opened and the Countess came in, looking unusually flustered.
‘Pardon the interruption, governess. Your Highnesses, your grandfather is here to see you.’
Alex and Anna exchanged startled glances. Grandfather’s visits were usually planned weeks in advance: he never arrived without warning. Why was he here so suddenly, out of the blue?
Without hesitating, they both hurried to the ballroom, where Grandfather was waiting for them. He grinned to see their astonished faces, and hugged each of them in turn. ‘Well, well, Alexander! Good heavens, Anna, you have a grip like a bear! Oh, and Würstchen, old friend, you’ve come to greet me too? How splendid. Here we all are again. I’m afraid I can’t stay very long, so we must make the most of it.’
It was so wonderful to see Grandfather that the horrid feeling in Anna’s stomach began to get better at once. Everything about him was reassuring – his long, wispy white beard, the kind blue eyes with wrinkles at the corners. Grandfather always understood things. Anna knew he would listen to her, and would know what to do. But the comfortable feeling melted away almost at once, as Grandfather began to speak.
‘Anna, the Countess tells me you have seen some rather alarming stories in the newspapers this morning,’ He cleared his throat. ‘I must tell you that unfortunately at present, our little coun
try is under threat.
‘You understand, don’t you, that whilst Arnovia is only a small country, we have one asset that is of very great value – an important railway line, which connects the German Empire and the Austria-Hungarian Empire through a tunnel cutting through the mountains? That railway line is what we call of strategic importance.’
‘But what does that mean?’ asked Anna breathlessly.
Rather to her surprise, it was Alex who answered her. ‘It means that whichever country controls it will have an advantage. In a war or something like that. Lots of other powerful countries in Europe would like to have control of our railway line.’
‘They would,’ said Grandfather. ‘The German Empire in particular. And to get it, they may try to seize control of Arnovia, or even invade us.’
Anna’s stomach clenched, but Grandfather went on: ‘But Arnovia has allies. Powerful friends, who we can trust to help and protect us. So whatever you may hear – or see in the newspapers – you must not worry. I will be working hard with the support of our friends to ensure this threat blows over quickly. And until then, you will be quite safe here at Wilderstein Castle.’
There was a heavy silence. Anna could hear the big old clock ticking in the stillness. Alex was frowning intently at Grandfather, and then he said: ‘But what about you ? Will you be safe?’
Grandfather looked at him for a moment, an odd expression on his face. Then he said: ‘You need not fear for my safety, Alexander. All will be well. There is much work to do which will keep me occupied, so you may not see me again for a little while. That’s why I wanted to come here today to see you and to tell you what was happening myself.’
Alex stared back at him unhappily, but Grandfather shook his head. ‘You mustn’t worry,’ he said again. ‘You can help me a great deal by taking good care of each other, and by doing exactly what the Count and Countess and Miss Carter tell you. I shall come back to see you again just as soon as I can.’
He got to his feet, and then said in an ordinary voice, as if this were exactly like any other visit: ‘Now then, Alexander, I hear Miss Carter has been teaching you some cricket? I played for the school cricket team myself once, you know! Perhaps we can go out into the grounds and you can show me what you’ve learned, before I go?’
Alex got up at once, but Anna reached out and grabbed Grandfather’s sleeve. ‘Wait … wait … there’s something I have to talk to you about,’ she rushed out. ‘It’s about Miss Carter!’
Grandfather stopped and frowned; Alex said: ‘Anna!’ in a furious voice. But Anna knew she could not possibly let Grandfather go without telling him what she had learned about their governess. She was still trying to take in all that he had said, but she knew that if the country was in danger, then her discovery was more important than ever.
‘I think she’s a spy!’ she exclaimed anxiously. ‘I saw her snooping about the castle at night, and going through the Count’s desk! She could be plotting against us – working for the enemy!’
The words sounded wild and silly as soon as they came out of her mouth. ‘Anna!’ exclaimed Alex again, but Grandfather just smiled.
‘My dear Anna,’ he said gently. ‘Do you really think I would let anyone take care of you if I wasn’t certain they could be relied upon? Miss Carter has my complete trust.’
She opened her mouth to argue, but he put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. ‘I promise you, my dear, you have absolutely nothing to worry about. Don’t give it another thought.’ He turned back to Alex. ‘Now, then, Alexander. Where do we find the cricket bat?’
‘But –’ Anna got to her feet, intending to say more, and to follow them outside, but Grandfather just gave her a small smile, and shook his head. Then he put his hand on Alex’s shoulder and guided him out of the room.
They were gone for nearly an hour. Anna had no intention of going back to the schoolroom, so instead she loitered by herself in the ballroom, listening to the clock ticking. The eyes of the portraits on the walls seemed to watch her more closely than ever as she waited for them to return, feeling more and more anxious and lonely with every minute that passed. But when at last the door opened, she saw that it was only Karl.
‘It’s time for His Majesty to leave, Your Highness,’ he said gently.
Outside, Grandfather hugged them both goodbye. ‘Farewell,’ he said. ‘Remember what I said, Alexander.’
He gave Anna a tight squeeze. ‘Take care of yourself, my dear, and take care of your brother too,’ he whispered. ‘You’re a good girl, Anna. I know that I can count on you.’
She tried to blink back tears as the royal carriage drew away. Grandfather leaned out of the window to wave a hand in farewell. ‘Look after yourselves, and each other!’ he called, as the horses began to move, and he was carried away from them. As the carriage ran along the road and out of the castle grounds, Anna saw a flock of black crows rise up from a tree in a great flapping of wings and harsh cries.
She turned to Alex. ‘What did he say to you?’ she demanded.
But Alex just shook her away. ‘I don’t want to talk,’ he said, fierce and solemn. ‘Just … go away and play or something, can’t you?’
He walked off and for the second time that day, Anna found herself staring at his back. Go away and play? How dare he!
Without really thinking about what she was doing, Anna turned sharply in the other direction, and walked away from him as fast as she could. Along the terrace, along the path, down the stone steps, to the secret place where she knew there was a door in the wall, half-concealed by a tangle of ivy and creepers. Of course, the children were strictly forbidden to leave the grounds, but Anna had made it her business to find out all the secret corners of the castle: the paths that were not overlooked, the hidden entrances that were not guarded. Through the hidden door she went and out, on to the hillside beyond, up along the steep rocky path. She knew she would be in trouble with the Countess if she were caught, but she felt too angry to care. In another mood she might have relished the excitement of being out on the hillside by herself, feeling the rush of wind, looking down at the expanse of forest and lake spread out below her. But now she was far too busy with her own thoughts, buzzing like a swarm of furious insects.
Arnovia was in danger. The German Empire was working to overthrow Grandfather, and to seize control of the country. People were conspiring against the King. Her breaths came quick and fast: Grandfather had said everything would be all right, that he would come to no harm, but how could he possibly be sure of that? What had he said to Alex to make him look so solemn? She hated that Alex always got to know about everything properly, just because he was a boy, and because he would be King someday.
Most of all, she hated that Grandfather had not listened to what she had told him. She kicked at a stone furiously and it went skittering away from her down the path. She knew it sounded silly, and of course she realised that he must have chosen Miss Carter with great care. But what if the governess had tricked him into thinking she could be trusted? Anna’s chest tightened. If Miss Carter was a spy, then she could be working for the German Empire – for those who even now were trying to seize control of Arnovia. Perhaps she’d been sent here to spy on the royal household – to find out secret information to send back to Berlin, and to use in the plot against Grandfather?
She’d been walking so fast that she was breathless, and now she’d realised she’d come further than she’d intended: she was already halfway up the dusty path that led up the hill. Pausing to catch her breath, she stared down at Wilderstein Castle below her. From here, it looked like a fortress, with its fierce grey stone ramparts, its turrets spiked like medieval spears, the green-and-white Arnovian flag fluttering proudly against the sky. It looked like a place that could withstand anything, somewhere they would always be safe. But she knew the castle was not safe any longer. How could it be when there was a spy in their midst?
Take care of your brother, Grandfather had said. I know that I can count on you. But how cou
ld she look after Alex when no one would believe her about Miss Carter? She knew the Countess would not take her seriously if Grandfather had not: she could already imagine the lecture she would get about the impropriety of making wild accusations, and why princesses should not question His Majesty the King’s choice of governess.
As she stood there, wrestling with her thoughts, she heard the jangle of cowbells coming closer. A moment later, a cowherd passed by on the mountain path above her, with half a dozen big brown-and-white cows. He was a tall, bronzed young man, with a feather in his hat, and he gave her a curious look before calling out the local greeting: ‘Grüß Gott, Fraulein !’
Anna blushed, realising how strange she must seem – a girl in a stiff black frock, standing halfway up the hillside all by herself. But just the same, she rather liked the thought that the cowherd had no idea who she was. He hadn’t bowed or called her ‘Your Highness’. He did not know she was a princess, or a member of the Royal House of Wilderstein. As far as he was concerned, she could have been anyone at all.
She waved a hand in reply. ‘Grüß Gott,’ she replied, trying to sound casual, as if she greeted cowherds every day. She watched him go, leading the cows on up the path, and for a moment she longed to follow him – to walk on, up the path and over the mountain, to discover what was on the other side. Instead, she turned back towards the castle. She knew she should go back before anyone noticed she was missing.
But for a few final moments, she stood and stared out – over the turrets of the castle, over the dark green conifers, and out to the glittering snow-capped mountains. Beyond lay the German border, where even now the troops could be mustering, making ready for an invasion. The thought of it made her shiver, but also quite sure of what she must do.
Grandfather had said they should do what the Count and Countess and Miss Carter told them, but he had also said they should look after each other, and that was exactly what Anna intended to do. Alex might be the Crown Prince, but she was his older sister. She would not let Miss Carter put him in danger. She would find a way to stop the governess and prove exactly what she was up to – before she could do anything more to help the plot against Arnovia.
Peril in Paris (Taylor and Rose Secret Agents) Page 6