The Man who Killed the King
Page 70
“I wondered about his future. At best he would be a Prince living in exile, but provided with money by fellow monarchs and protected by his high birth from all ordinary laws. He would know few restraints; so would practise bestial cruelties on animals and on every human being who was unfortunate enough to fall into his power. At worst he would be crowned Louis XVII, King of France, in Rheims Cathedral. That was the most likely possibility; for I think it certain that, now a reaction has set in, it will be only a matter of time before the French people demand a restitution of the Monarchy, just as we did by recalling Charles II after the Great Rebellion. Then he would provoke a second Revolution, which might cost the lives of another million of his subjects; or perhaps start another war which might engulf all Europe. I realised then that I had with me in the boat, not only a hundred thousand pounds, but the most terrible menace to human happiness that existed in the whole world.
“I was desperately tired, and at length decided to snatch a little sleep; but it occurred to me that the vicious little brute might wake in the night, steal my knife, and do me an injury. So I took out my opium pellets again and opened his mouth. He did not even stir, but I knew two more would do him no serious harm; so I slipped a couple down his throat.
“When I awoke it was morning; and I was alone in the boat.”
Amanda drew a sharp breath. “Oh, Roger! Then it was God’s will that he should wake, and, while still dazed from the drug, fall out?”
Roger shook his head. “Nay, it was not like that. I do not recall falling asleep. I was still sitting staring at him when I heard a soft voice calling to me. I looked up, and there, walking on the water towards me, was Marie Antoinette.
“She was not as I last saw her, haggard and grey, but radiantly beautiful, just as I first set eyes on her when a boy; and she was holding out her arms to me.
“ ‘Monsieur de Breuc,’ she said in that sweet voice of hers, ‘my poor child’s mind is sick, and nothing but my love can cure it. What he has become is through no fault of his; but only the ending of his life while young can now save his soul. When I was in the Temple you gave me your oath that naught but God’s intervention should prevent you from restoring my son to me. I beg you do so now.’
“I knew without her saying more how she wished me to act. Picking the boy up, I laid him gently in the water at her feet. In that moment he too seemed to have regained his innocent look and former beauty. As he went under, he never stirred; but he was still alive. So, you see, I killed the King.”
Tears were running down Amanda’s cheeks as she drew Roger’s head on to her shoulder, and murmured, “Oh, my poor sweet! How you must have suffered while carrying this dread secret for these past weeks. But suffer no more. You gave up a great fortune, and assumed a terrible burden to do what you knew to be right; and I shall never cease to love you for it.”
A Note on the Author
DENNIS WHEATLEY
Dennis Wheatley (1897 – 1977) was an English author whose prolific output of stylish thrillers and occult novels made him one of the world’s best-selling writers from the 1930s through the 1960s.
Wheatley was the eldest of three children, and his parents were the owners of Wheatley & Son of Mayfair, a wine business. He admitted to little aptitude for schooling, and was expelled from Dulwich College, London. In 1919 he assumed management of the family wine business but in 1931, after a decline in business due to the depression, he began writing.
His first book, The Forbidden Territory, became a bestseller overnight, and since then his books have sold over 50 million copies worldwide. During the 1960s, his publishers sold one million copies of Wheatley titles per year, and his Gregory Sallust series was one of the main inspirations for Ian Fleming’s James Bond stories.
During the Second World War, Wheatley was a member of the London Controlling Section, which secretly coordinated strategic military deception and cover plans. His literary talents gained him employment with planning staffs for the War Office. He wrote numerous papers for the War Office, including suggestions for dealing with a German invasion of Britain.
Dennis Wheatley died on 11th November 1977. During his life he wrote over 70 books and sold over 50 million copies.
Discover books by Dennis Wheatley published by Bloomsbury Reader at
www.bloomsbury.com/DennisWheatley
Duke de Richleau
The Forbidden Territory
The Devil Rides Out
The Golden Spaniard
Three Inquisitive People
Strange Conflict
Codeword Golden Fleece
The Second Seal
The Prisoner in the Mask
Vendetta in Spain
Dangerous Inheritance
Gateway to Hell
Gregory Sallust
Black August
Contraband
The Scarlet Impostor
Faked Passports
The Black Baroness
V for Vengeance
Come into My Parlour
The Island Where Time Stands Still
Traitors’ Gate
They Used Dark Forces
The White Witch of the South Seas
Julian Day
The Quest of Julian Day
The Sword of Fate
Bill for the Use of a Body
Roger Brook
The Launching of Roger Brook
The Shadow of Tyburn Tree
The Rising Storm
The Man Who Killed the King
The Dark Secret of Josephine
The Rape of Venice
The Sultan’s Daughter
The Wanton Princess
Evil in a Mask
The Ravishing of Lady Mary Ware
The Irish Witch
Desperate Measures
Molly Fountain
To the Devil a Daughter
The Satanist
Lost World
They Found Atlantis
Uncharted Seas
The Man Who Missed the War
Espionage
Mayhem in Greece
The Eunuch of Stamboul
The Fabulous Valley
The Strange Story of Linda Lee
Such Power is Dangerous
The Secret War
Science Fiction
Sixty Days to Live
Star of Ill-Omen
Black Magic
The Haunting of Toby Jugg
The KA of Gifford Hillary
Unholy Crusade
Short Stories
Mediterranean Nights
Gunmen, Gallants and Ghosts
This electronic edition published in 2014 by Bloomsbury Reader
Bloomsbury Reader is a division of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc,
50 Bedford Square, London WC1B 3DP
First published in 1951 by Hutchinson & Co. Ltd.
Copyright © 1951 Dennis Wheatley
All rights reserved
You may not copy, distribute, transmit, reproduce or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (including without limitation electronic, digital, optical, mechanical, photocopying, printing, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
The moral right of the author is asserted.
eISBN: 9781448212910
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