CHAPTER XXII
ACTIVITY OF AUSTRIAN SPIES
Louise left her brougham in Piccadilly and walked across the GreenPark. Bellamy, who was waiting, rose up from a seat, hat in hand.She took his arm in foreign fashion. They walked together towardsBuckingham Palace--a strangely distinguished-looking couple.
"My dear David," she said, "the man perplexes me. To look at him,to hear him speak, one would swear that he was honest. He has justthose clear blue eyes and the stolid face, half stupid and halfsplendid, of your athletic Englishman. One would imagine him doinga foolishly honorable thing, but he is not my conception of acriminal at all."
Bellamy kicked a pebble from the path. His forehead wore a perplexedfrown.
"He didn't give himself away, then?"
"Not in the least."
"He took you out and showed you the spot where it happened?"
"Without an instant's hesitation."
"As a matter of curiosity," asked Bellamy, "did he try to makelove to you?"
She shook her head.
"I even gave him an opening," she said. "Of flirtation he has nomore idea than the average stupid Englishman one meets."
Bellamy was silent for several moments.
"I can't believe," he said, "that there is the least doubt but thathe has the money and the portfolio. I have made one or two otherinquiries, and I find that his firm was in very low water indeedonly a week ago. They were spoken of, in fact, as being hopelesslyinsolvent. No one can imagine how they tided over the crisis."
"The man who was watching for you?" she inquired.
"He makes no mistakes," Bellamy assured her. "He saw Laverick enterthat passage and come out. Afterwards he went back to his office,although he had closed up there and had been on his homeward way.The thing could not have been accidental."
"Why do you not go to him openly?" she suggested. "He is, afterall, an Englishman, and when you tell him what you know he will bevery much in your power. Tell him of the value of that document.Tell him that you must have it."
"It could be done," Bellamy admitted. "I think that one of us musttalk plainly to him. Listen, Louise,--are you seeing him again?"
"I have invited him to come to the Opera House to-night."
"See what you can do," he begged. "I would rather keep away fromhim myself, if I can. Have you heard anything of Streuss?"
She shrugged her shoulders.
"Nothing directly," she replied, "but my rooms have been searched--evenmy dressing-room at the Opera House. That man's spies aresimply wonderful. He seems able to plant them everywhere. And,David!--"
"Yes, dear?"
"He has got hold of Lassen," she continued. "I am perfectlycertain of it."
"Then the sooner you get rid of Lassen, the better," Bellamydeclared.
"It is so difficult," she murmured, in a perplexed tone. "The manhas all my affairs in his hands. Up till now, although he isuncomely, and a brute in many ways, he has served me well."
"If he is Streuss's creature he must go," Bellamy insisted.
She nodded.
"Let us sit down for a few minutes," she said. "I am tired."
She sank on to a seat and Bellamy sat by her side. In full viewof them was Buckingham Palace with its flag flying. She lookedthoughtfully at it and across to Westminster.
"Do they know, I wonder, your country-people?" she asked.
"Half-a-dozen of them, perhaps," he answered gloomily, no more.
"To-day," she declared, "I seem to have lost confidence. I seem tofeel the sense of impending calamity, to hear the guns as I walk,to see the terror fall upon the faces of all these great crowds whothrong your streets. They are a stolid, unbelieving people--these.The blow, when it comes, will be the harder."
Bellamy sighed.
"You are right," he said. "When one comes to think of it, it isamazing. How long the prophets of woe have preached, and howcompletely their teachings have been ignored! The invasion bogeyhas been so long among us that it has become nothing but a jest.Even I, in a way, am one of the unbelievers."
"You are not serious, David!" she exclaimed.
"I am," he affirmed. "I think that if we could read that documentwe should see that there is no plan there for the immediate invasionof England. I think you would find that the blow would be strucksimultaneously at our Colonies. We should either have to submit orsend a considerable fleet away from home waters. Then, I presume,the question of invasion would come again. All the time, of course,the gage would be flung down, treaties would be defied, we should bescorned as though we were a nation of weaklings. Austria wouldgather in what she wanted, and there would be no one to interfere."
Louise was very pale but her eyes were flashing fire.
"It is the most terrible thing which has happened in history," shesaid, "this decadence of your country. Once England held the scalesof justice for the world. Now she is no longer strong enough, andthere is none to take her place. David, even if you know what thatdocument contains, even then will it help very much?"
"Very much indeed. Don't you see that there is one hope left tous--one hope--and that is Russia? The Czar must be made towithdraw from that compact. We want to know his share in it. Whenwe know that, there will be a secret mission sent to Russia. Germanyand Austria are strong, but they are not all the world. With Russiabehind and France and England westward, the struggle is at least anequal one. They have to face both directions, they have to face twogreat armies working from the east and from the west."
She nodded, and they sat there in silence for several moments.Bellamy was thinking deeply.
"You say, Louise," he asked, looking up quickly, "that your roomshave been searched. When was this?"
"Only last night," she replied.
Bellamy drew a little sigh of relief.
"At any rate," he said, "Streuss has no idea that the document isnot in our possession. He knows nothing about Laverick. How arewe going to deal with him, Louise, when he comes for his answer?"
"You have a plan?" she asked.
"There is only one thing to be done," Bellamy declared. "I shallsay that we have already handed over the document to the EnglishGovernment. It will be a bluff, pure and simple. He may believeit or he may not."
"You will break your compact then," she reminded him.
"I shall call myself justified," he continued. "He has attemptedto rob us of the document. You are sure of what you say--that yourrooms and dressing-room have been searched?"
"Absolutely certain," she declared.
"That will be sufficient," Bellamy decided. "If Streuss comes tome, I shall meet him frankly. I shall tell him that he has triedto play the burglar and that it must be war. I shall tell him thatthe compact is in the hands of the Prime Minister, and that he andhis spies had better clear out."
She looked at him questioningly.
"Of course, you understand," he added, "there is one thing we cando, and one thing only. We must send a mission to Russia and anotherto France, and before the German fleet can pass down the North Seawe must declare war. It is the only thing left to us--a bold front.Without that packet we have no casus belli. With it, we can strike,and strike hard. I still believe that if we declare war within sevendays, we shall save ourselves."
Streuss and Kahn looked, too, across the panorama of London, acrossthe dingy Adelphi Gardens, the turbid Thames, the smoke-hung worldbeyond. They were together in Streuss's sitting-room on the seventhfloor of one of the great Strand hotels.
"Our enterprise is a failure!" Kahn exclaimed gloomily. "We cannotdoubt it any longer. I think, Streuss, that the best course youand I could adopt would be to realize it and to get back. We do nogood here. We only run needless risks."
The face of the other man was dark with anger. His tone, when hespoke, shook with passion.
"You don't know what you say, Kahn!" he cried hoarsely. "I tell youthat we must succeed. If that document reaches the hands of any onein authorit
y here, it would be the worst disaster which has fallenupon our country since you or I were born. You don't understand,Kahn! You keep your eyes closed!"
"What men can do we have done," the other answered. "Von Behrlingplayed us false. He has died a traitor's death, but it is verycertain that he parted with his document before he received thattwenty thousand pounds."
"Once and for all, I do not believe it!" Streuss declared. "Atmid-day, I can swear to it that the contents of that envelope wereunknown to the Ministers of the King here. Now if Von Behrlinghad parted with that document last Monday night, don't you supposethat everything would be known by now? He did not part with it.Bellamy and Mademoiselle lie when they say that they possess it.That document remains in the possession of Von Behrling's murderer,and it is for us to find him."
Kahn sighed.
"It is outside our sphere--that. What can we do against the policeof this country working in their own land?"
Streuss struck the table before which they were standing. The veinsin his temples were like whipcord.
"Adolf," he muttered, "you talk like a fool! Can't you see what itmeans? If that document reaches its destination, what do you supposewill happen?"
"They will know our plans, of course," Kahn answered. "They willhave time to make preparation."
Streuss laughed bitterly.
"Worse than that!" he exclaimed. "They are not all fools, theseEnglish statesmen, though one would think so to read their speeches.Can't you see what the result would be if that document reachesDowning Street? War at a moment's notice, war six months too soon!Don't you know that every shipbuilding yard in Germany is workingnight and day? Don't you know that every nerve is being strained,that the muscles of the country are hammering the rivets into ournew battleships? There is but one chance for this country, and ifher statesmen read that document they will know what it is. It isopen to them to destroy the German navy utterly, to render themselvessecure against attack."
"They would never have the courage," Kahn declared. "They mightmake a show of defending themselves if they were attacked, but totake the initiative--no! I do not believe it."
"There is one man who has wit enough to do it," Streuss said. "Hemay not be in the Cabinet, but he commands it. Kahn, wake up, man!You and I together have never known what failure means. I tell youthat that document is still to be bought or fought for, and we mustfind it. This morning Mademoiselle drove into the city and calledat the offices of a stockbroker within a dozen yards of CrookedFriars' Alley. She was there a long time. The stockbroker himselfcame out with her into the street, took her to see the entry, stoodwith her there and returned. What was her interest in him, Kahn?His name is Laverick. Four days ago he was on the brink of ruin.To the amazement of every one, he met all his engagements. Why didMademoiselle go to the city to see him? He was at his office latethat Tuesday night. He had a partner who has disappeared."
Kahn looked at his companion with admiration.
"You have found all this out!" he exclaimed.
"And more," Streuss declared. "For twenty-four hours, this manLaverick has not moved without my spies at his heels."
"Why not approach him boldly?" Kahn suggested. "If he has thedocument, let us outbid Mademoiselle Louise, and do it quickly."
Streuss shook his head.
"You don't know the man. He is an Englishman, and if he had anyidea what that document contained, our chances of buying it wouldbe small indeed. This is what I think will happen. Mademoisellewill try to obtain it, and try in vain. Then Bellamy will tell himthe truth, and he will part with it willingly. In the meantime, Ibelieve that it is in his possession.
"The evidence is slender enough," objected Kahn.
"What if it is!" Streuss exclaimed. "If it is only a hundred to onechance, we have to take it. I have no fancy for disgrace, Adolf,and I know very well what will happen if we go back empty-handed."
The telephone bell rang. Streuss took off the receiver and held itto his ear. The words which he spoke were few, but when he laidthe instrument down there was a certain amount of satisfaction inhis face.
"At any rate," he announced, "this man Laverick did not part withthe document to-day. Mademoiselle Louise and Bellamy have beensitting in the Park for an hour. When they separated, she drovehome and dropped him at his club. Up till now, then, they have notthe document. We shall see what Mr. Laverick does when he leavesbusiness this evening; if he goes straight home, either the documenthas never been in his possession, or else it is in the safe in hisoffice; if he goes to Mademoiselle Idiale's--"
"Well?" Kahn asked eagerly.
"If he goes to Mademoiselle Idiale's," Streuss repeated slowly,"there is still a chance for us!"
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