There was life and animation and excitement upon that momentous day when
the duke and duchess, with their numerous retinue, were expected at
Fürstenstein; even the old forest, which had been witness to so many
magnificent hunts in its time, put on its warmest colors, and showed in
the clear sunlight its deepest reds and most vivid greens.
The reigning duke was, above all things, an ardent and keen sportsman,
and he rarely missed a few days of sport at this season. Now when he was
coming for several weeks, and was bringing with him such a large suite,
it was found that Fürstenstein, notwithstanding its size, could not
accommodate them all. Suitable quarters had to be found in Waldhofen,
and that little town was in a state of pleasurable excitement in
consequence.
Prince Adelsberg, besides being the owner of the adjoining estate and
castle, was also connected in some way with nearly all the families
forming the ducal suite, and could not of course neglect them. Some of
the men had been invited to take up their quarters at his little hunting
lodge, so that the life and bustle which centered at Fürstenstein,
extended to the woodland loneliness of Rodeck.
To-night the castle was brilliantly illuminated, and the colored lights
which gleamed from its many windows, threw a rosy glow over wall and
tower. It was the first large gathering since the arrival of the Court,
and every one in the whole neighborhood who laid any claims whatever to
social rank, had been invited. The interior of the castle had been
gorgeously decorated, and the spacious rooms with their lights and
music, and throngs of elegantly attired woman, together with the
glittering appearance of the men in their court costumes, formed a scene
not soon forgotten.
Prominent among the many grand ladies of the little court was the wife
of the Prussian ambassador. It was her first appearance among them, her
father's death, following immediately upon her marriage, having secluded
her, and now, in the little circle where her husband's position gave her
much prominence, she was the cynosure of all eyes. The duke, too, and
his duchess, to whom she had been presented a few weeks previous,
treated the ambassador's wife with special deference.
The court ladies, however, looked upon the appearance of this new star
with anything but satisfaction. They all discovered soon enough, that
Frau von Wallmoden, with her cold and haughty manner, was a very proud
woman, and certainly she had no reason to be so; they knew only too well
who she was: only a burger's daughter, who had no right to be in their
charmed circle at all; her father's great wealth, and a certain
prominence to which he had attained by success in his manufacturing
interests, were all she could lay claim to at best. But she certainly
carried herself with remarkable security; they all admitted that it was
evident her husband had schooled her carefully for her first appearance,
for she made no mistakes.
The men were of another opinion. They found that the ambassador had
proven himself a profound diplomatist in this, as in other things. He,
standing on the threshold of old age, had married a beautiful young girl
with a fortune, which fortune, if report did not err, had been greatly
augmented since their marriage, and was still on the increase. Such a
condition of affairs was to be envied. Wallmoden was not the least
surprised at the impression which his wife's beauty and manners made
upon them all, and he took it, as the true diplomatist takes all things,
as a matter of course. He had expected nothing else, and would on the
contrary have been surprised if she had not created a sensation.
He stood for one moment now, in a window recess with his brother-in-law,
the head forester, and asked casually, while he glanced indifferently
over the heads of the guests:
"Who is it Prince Adelsberg has with him? Do you know?"
"You mean the young Roumanian? No. I see him to-day for the first time;
but I have heard about him before. He is Prince Egon's bosom friend, and
accompanied him on his oriental tour. He's as handsome as a picture, and
how the fire does flash in his eyes."
"He looks to me like an adventurer," said Wallmoden, coldly. "How did he
come to be invited here? Has he been presented to the duke?"
"Yes, at Rodeck, so I heard. The duke went over there the first thing.
Once in a while Prince Adelsberg succumbs to the, rules of etiquette.
But as to this invitation, it signifies nothing; every one is invited
here to-day."
The ambassador shrugged his shoulders.
"It is hardly wise to invite persons about whom you know absolutely
nothing into your midst."
"You diplomatists want all the credentials sealed and delivered,"
laughed his brother-in-law. "There's something aristocratic looking
about this Rojanow, too, which one does not expect to see in a
foreigner. But I'm glad enough to invite any one out of the common for
his grace. He must be wearied with this endless court etiquette and
court gossip, year in and year out. The duke, by the way, seems to have
taken a great fancy to this young Roumanian already."
"Yes, so it seems," said Wallmoden, a cloud gathering on his brow.
"As for the man's history, if he has any, what does it matter to us?
Well, I must look after Toni, and see how she's getting along without
that lover of hers. That was a queer freak of Regine's. As soon as
anything concerning her beloved Burgsdorf comes on the tapis, nothing
will keep her. And she raises such a racket with her son, too. She might
as well have left Will here. No one knows why she dragged him away; just
before the duke came, too.--I'm sure I'll never understand your sister."
"It's a good thing she did," muttered Wallmoden, as he separated from
von Schönau. "If Willibald had seen his boyhood's friend here, there
would have been another scene, doubtless. Who would have thought that
Hartmut would carry his defiance so far as to go to a house where he
must have known he would meet the ambassador."
Prince Adelsberg, who, through his name and wealth, and his near kinship
to the reigning house, took a first position in the brilliant little
circle, had made a point of introducing his dearest friend to the duke,
at Rodeck, and the stranger had impressed the duke so favorably that he
had made special comment of him to the duchess.
This Rojanow, with his charming personality and the air of mystery which
surrounded him, had only to exert himself to receive due attention on
all sides.
And to-day he exercised all those fascinating qualities which he
possessed in fullest measure. His conversation sparkled with wit and
animation, and his ardent temperament imparted to everything he said the
stamp of originality, while united with this he showed himself a master
of social courtesies.
It was no difficult matter for the ambassador to avoid the Roumanian; in
a large house filled with guests, such avoidance is an easy matter, and
neither of these two were anxious for a meeting. Wallmoden turned now
into an adjoining room, where the duke's sister, the Princess Sophie,
was holding a little court. The princess had married the younger son of
a princely house, but had been a widow now for years, and had lived
since her widowhood at her brother's court, where she was by no means a
favorite. The duchess was beloved for her gentleness and kind
heartedness, by all who came in her way, but her elderly sister-in-law
was disliked heartily for her arrogance and acerbity. They all feared
her sharp tongue, which never failed to bring to light disagreeable
features or fancies, as the case might be, concerning those with whom
she had to do.
Herr von Wallmoden did not escape this fate; he was received most
graciously and congratulated at once upon the great beauty of his wife,
about which there could be no dispute.
"Your excellency has indeed my warmest congratulations. I was quite
surprised when your young wife was presented to me. I had, as a matter
of course, expected to meet a much older woman."
The "matter of course" had a malicious sound, for the princess had known
for the past six months that the elderly ambassador was married to a
girl of nineteen; he smiled in a perfectly placid manner, as he
answered:
"Your highness is very good. I cannot be too thankful if my wife has
made a favorable impression upon yourself and your family."
"O, you need not doubt that the duke and duchess are quite of my
opinion. Frau von Wallmoden is really a beauty--Prince Adelsberg seems
to think so also. Perhaps you have not noticed how greatly he admires
her?"
"Yes, your highness, I have noticed it."
"Really? And what do you say to it?"
"I?" asked Wallmoden, composedly. "Whether or no she cares to accept the
prince's homage is wholly and solely my wife's affair. If she finds any
pleasure in it--I certainly will lay no commands upon her."
"Your enviable confidence in your wife should be an example to younger
husbands," replied the princess, angry that her arrow had missed its
aim. "It is very pleasant, at least for a young wife, to feel that her
husband is not jealous. Ah, here comes Frau von Wallmoden herself, with
her knight by her side. My dear baroness, we were just speaking of you."
Adelheid von Wallmoden, who with Prince Adelsberg, had just entered the
room, made a courtesy to the princess. She was indeed dazzling in her
beauty to-day, for her rich Court toilette so well chosen, suited her
most admirably. The costly white brocade, with its long, heavy folds,
set off her slender figure to advantage, the pearls which encircled her
neck, and the diamonds which glistened in her light blonde hair, were
jewels well worth the notice of connoisseurs; but that which was most
worthy of attention was the singular coldness and earnestness of this
young wife's face and bearing. She bore no resemblance whatever to
others of her own age in this brilliant assemblage, who were for the
most part married also, and who were decked out in all the witcheries of
lace and flowers. They possessed nothing of her stateliness, but she in
turn had none of their sweetness or assumed gentleness; none of that
premeditated amiability which society women assume under the public
gaze. The severe rigidity of that lovely face was a heritage from her
father, whose stern, austere nature had left its impress upon her soul
as well.
Egon kissed the hand of his illustrious aunt, and murmured a few polite
words of greeting, but the amiable attention of her highness was
directed toward the beautiful woman who had just joined them.
"I was just saying to his excellency, that you found yourself at home
very readily in our little Court circle, my dear baroness. You are
entering our little society for the first time to-day, and have lived,
no doubt, in a very different atmosphere until now. Your name was--?"
"Stahlberg, your highness," was the quiet reply.
"Oh, yes, I remember it now. I have heard the name often enough. It was
well known, I believe--in mercantile circles."
"My dearest aunt, you must permit me to set you right in this matter,"
interrupted Prince Egon, not wishing to lose an opportunity to anger his
aunt. "The Stahlberg manufacturies have a worldwide reputation, and are
as celebrated across the ocean as here. I had an opportunity, when I was
in North Germany, to learn something about them, and can assure you that
these works, with their iron foundries and enormous factories, their
colony of officers and army of workmen, could absorb many a little
principality, whose rulers have no such unlimited power as had the
baroness' father."
The lady threw her princely nephew anything but a friendly glance; his
interference was to her mind most uncalled for.
"Indeed! I had no conception of such greatness," said she innocently. "I
shall have to greet your excellency from this time forth as a great
ruler."
"Only as a regent of the empire, your highness," answered the
ambassador, seconding, a little apparently harmless joke. "I am only my
father-in-law's executor, and guardian of my wife's younger brother, who
will assume the entire management of the works as soon as he reaches his
majority."
"Ah, indeed. The son will have to learn to keep a watchful eye over his
inheritance. It is really astonishing to me to see what in these days
can be accomplished by the energy of a single man. It is all the more
creditable, too, when he, like the father of our dear baroness here,
springs from the people. I think I heard that, but I may be mistaken!"
Princess Sophie knew well that the ambassador, with his old Prussian
noble ancestry would find this rehearsal of his father-in-law's station
in life anything but pleasant, and it gave her great satisfaction to
note that none of the little group who surrounded her, lost a word of
the conversation, which was meant to humiliate the lovely new comer.
Baroness von Wallmoden drew herself up proudly as she replied:
"Your highness has been correctly informed. My father was of the people,
and entered the capital a poor boy with no means whatever at his
command. He had many and great struggles, and worked for years as a
simple artisan, before he could lay even the foundations for his great
undertaking."
"How proudly Frau von Wallmoden says that," cried the princess laughing.
"O I love such childlike attachment, above everything. And Herr
Stahlberg--or was it von Stahlberg? The great industrial heads often get
titles of nobility."
"My father took no such title, your highness," said Adelheid, meeting
the other's glance quietly but directly. "It was offered to him but he
refused it."
The ambassador pressed his lips tightly together; he could not forbear
thinking this last utterance of his wife very undiplomatic. The
countenance of the princess assumed at once an irritated expression, and
she answered, with an unconcealed sneer:
"Well, it is at least fortunate that this aversion was not inherited by
the daughter. Your excellency will know how to appreciate it. Please
give me your arm, Egon. I want to find my brother."
She bowed coldly to those around her as she took the arm of her nephew,
in whose face was plainly written:
"Now it is my turn."
He did not deceive himself, his aunt had no intention of seeking the
duke; she turned into an adjoining room with her young kinsman that she
might have him under her eyes without interruption for a little time. At
first she expended her anger against this unbearable, arrogant Frau von
Wallmoden, who boasted of the vulgar pride of her father, while she
herself married a baron for his title, for, of course, she could feel no
love for a man who was old enough to be her father. Egon was silent for
he had speculated on that matter himself. How had so unequal a marriage
ever come about? But his silence just now was resented by his incensed
aunt.
"Well, Egon, why don't you say something? Really it does seem as if you
were this woman's sworn knight, you are by her side continually."
"I always do homage to beauty, when it comes in my way, you certainly
know that, my dear aunt," explained the prince, striving to shield
himself, but he only brought down a fresh storm on his head.
"Yes, I know that--I'm sorry to say. You have in this particular always
exhibited great folly. You do not seem to remember all my warnings and
admonitions before you started for the Orient."
"O, yes, I do," sighed Egon, to whom the very memory of those endless
lectures was an oppression.
"Really! But you have not returned more sensible or settled. I have
heard things--Egon, there's only one salvation for you--you must marry!"
"For heaven's sake! Anything but that!" exclaimed Egon, in such a voice
of affright that the princess shut her fan with an angry snap, as she
said in a sharp tone:
"What do you mean by that?"
"O, nothing but my own unworthiness to enter into such a holy state. You
yourself, your highness, have often assured me that I was specially
created to make a wife unhappy."
"If the wife does not succeed in making you better. But you are a
hopeless case. At any rate this is neither the time nor the place to
discuss so serious a matter. The duchess is planning a visit to Rodeck,
and I am thinking of accompanying her."
"What a charming idea," said Egon, to whom the thought of an invasion by
his noble kinsfolk was even more terrifying than the marriage plan. "I
am rejoiced that Rodeck, notwithstanding its isolated situation,
contains something worthy of notice just at present. I brought a good
many curiosities home with me from my journey, among other things a
lion, two young tigers, and some very rare snakes."
"But not alive?" interrupted his aunt.
"Of course, your highness."
"The Lord preserve us! Your life is not safe."
"Oh, they're not so dangerous after all. Only a few of the beasts have
broken away; the people are so afraid of feeding them--but they were
caught again and have not done any harm up to this time."
"Up to this time! A nice condition of affairs, I must say," exclaimed
the princess angrily, "to keep every one in the region in constant
danger of their lives. The duke ought to forbid you such diabolical
amusement."
"Oh, I trust not, for I'm just trying to tame them. But I have some
domesticated creatures to show, as well. Among my servants are several
lovely girls who are well worth looking at in their picturesque national
costumes."
Egon thought with a shudder, as he made this assertion, of the wretched
old woman for whose appearance he had to thank the ever-watchful
Stadinger, but he had not miscalculated the effect of his announcement.
His amiable aunt drew herself up with an angry snort, and measured him
with no conciliatory glance.
"Oh, you have them at Rodeck also?"
"Yes, indeed; and little Zena, the granddaughter of my old steward, is a
lovely little thing, and if you do me the honor of visiting me, dear
aunt, I'll--"
"I will not go near the place," his aunt interrupted sharply. "There
must be nice goings on at Rodeck anyway, which keep you there with that
young foreigner who is another of the curiosities you brought from the
Orient. He looks like an out and out brigand."
"My friend Rojanow? He longs for the honor of being presented to you
above all things. I may introduce him now, may I not?" and without
waiting an answer, he hurried away to fetch Hartmut.
"Now its your turn, my boy," he said, seizing his friend by the arm. "I
have been the sacrificial lamb long enough, and now my angelic aunt must
have some one else to turn on the spit. She wants to marry me off at
once, and she thinks you're a veritable brigand, but, God be praised,
she won't come to Rodeck. I've made that my special care."
The next moment the two friends were standing before the princess, and
Egon presented the latest victim with an amiable smile.
After the princess's abrupt departure, Herr von Wallmoden remained for a
few minutes chatting with the little group which the irate lady had
deserted. Then, offering his wife his arm, he walked slowly through the
long salons, greeting an acquaintance here, or saying a word to a friend
there, until they had reached the last of the gaily decked suite which
happened to be empty. The tower-room was used generally only as a
resting place and a point of observation, from which a very good view of
the forest heights could be obtained, but to-day it was richly carpeted
and the walls were hung with heavy tapestries, while choice plants were
scattered about in artistic groupings and designs, so that the little
room was as shaded and picturesque as could be desired, and a rest to
both eye and brain, after the glitter and noise and light of the larger
ones. The ambassador had judged aright in thinking he would have an
uninterrupted moment with his wife, for whom he now drew forward a low
chair.
"I must call your attention to the fact, Adelheid," he began in a low,
condemnatory tone, "that you were guilty of great imprudence, just now.
Your speech to the princess--"
"Was in self-defence," the young wife broke in. "You understood, as well
as I, the object of the whole conversation."
"That's as it may be. You have, on your first entrance into society,
made an enemy who will make both you and me feel her animosity very
keenly as time goes on."
"You!" Adelheid looked at him in surprise. "Will you, the ambassador of
a great nation, have anything to fear from a malicious woman, who
happens to be related to the ducal house?"
"My child, you do not comprehend," responded her husband, coolly. "An
evil-tongued woman can be more dangerous than any political opponent,
and Princess Sophie is famed in this respect; even the duchess herself
fears her slanderous tongue."
"In that the duchess and I differ--I do not fear her."
"My dear Adelheid," said the ambassador with a superior smile, "that
proud movement of the head does you great credit. But at Court, you must
learn to do as others do. One cannot give royalty a lesson before too
many witnesses, and that is what you did when you spoke of your father's
declination of a title of nobility. It was not necessary for you to be
so explicit concerning your father's origin."
"Should I have falsified?"
"No, but it was a well known fact--"
"Of which I am proud, as was my father before me."
"You are no longer Adelheid Stahlberg, but the Baroness Wallmoden"--the
baron's voice had assumed a sudden sharpness. "And you, yourself, will
be forced to admit that when a woman has married into a family of the
old nobility, it is hardly fitting for her to sneer at the nobles."
The young wife's lips were drawn in with a bitter expression. Although
she had been speaking in a subdued tone, she dropped her voice still
lower, as she said now: "Have you forgotten, Herbert, why I gave you my
hand?"
"Perhaps you have had cause to regret it?" he said, questioning instead
of answering.
"No," said Adelheid with a deep breath.
"I thought you were perfectly contented with the position to which you
had attained by marrying me. As for the rest you know I exercised no
control over you. I left it to your own free will."
His wife was silent, but the bitter expression was yet on her lips.
Wallmoden rose and offered her his arm.
"You must permit me, my child, to help you at times, for you are
inexperienced," he said in his wonted polite tone. "I have had every
reason to be contented with your tact and discretion, but to-day I
thought it necessary to give you a hint. Will you take my arm?"
"I will remain here a few minutes if you please," said Adelheid. "It is
so stifling in the saloon."
"As you please. But I must beg you to come back soon, otherwise your
absence will be noticed."
He saw that she was vexed and disturbed, but he thought best to take no
notice of it. He knew well what was expected from them both in their
little world, and felt for both their sakes it was better to educate his
wife from the start in those matters which she did not seem to grasp
fully.
He left her now, and Adelheid leaned back in her chair and gazed fixedly
at the flowering plants which were grouped by her side, but under her
breath she whispered with a gasp:
"_My own free will. O my God!_"
Prince Adelsberg and his friend had, in the meantime, been dismissed,
and had made profound bows before the princess as she rose to leave the
room. The sharp features of her highness wore an unusually mild
expression, and Rojanow was favored with a very gracious smile as she
departed.
"Hartmut, I believe you are a witch," said Egon, half aloud. "I have had
proof many times that you are irresistible, but this last effort of
yours throws all others in shadow. For my gracious aunt to have so
prolonged an attack of amiability is unknown in the annals of the
family."
"Well, my reception was ungracious enough. Your aunt seemed to think at
first that I was a full-fledged brigand."
"But it only took ten minutes to win her smiles and make you a declared
favorite. What is it you have about you, old fellow, which wins on every
one? It makes one believe in the old fable of the rat-catcher."
The old scornful expression, which effaced all his beauty, swept across
Hartmut's face now, as he said contemptuously:
"I understand how to sing to tickle the ears of my hearers. You have to
strike the chords according to the taste of your listener, but after you
have learned that secret no one can withstand you."
"No one?" repeated Egon, as his eye glanced over the room.
"No, not a single soul, I assure you."
"Oh, you're a pessimist with all your inferences. I only wish I knew
where Frau von Wallmoden was, but I don't see her in any place."
"His excellency was reading her a little sermon on her undiplomatic
utterances in the other room a short time ago."
"Why, did you hear what she said?" asked Egon, surprised.
"Certainly, I was standing by the door."
"Well, I'm glad enough my worshipful aunt was given a snub, and wasn't
she furious over it, though; but do you believe that the ambassador
would take his wife to task for--hush, here he is himself."
Yes, there was Baron von Wallmoden himself, true enough, and just in
front of them as they came from an adjoining room.
It was impossible to avoid a meeting now, and the young prince, who had
no premonition that any secret relations existed between the two,
hastened to present them.
"Permit me, your excellency, to atone for the neglect of which I was
guilty on the mountain the other day, but my friend had disappeared for
the moment when we came down from the Tower. Herr Hartmut Rojanow--Baron
von Wallmoden."
The eyes of the two men met, the one with a sharp, contemptuous gaze,
the other, equally sharp, but haughty and defiant. The ambassador was
too much of a diplomat, however, to be other than the courteous
gentleman.
His greeting, though cold, was polite, but he turned at once to the
prince to speak, and chatted to that gentleman alone for the minute or
two that they stood together.
"His excellency is more of a ramrod than ever to-day," said Egon to his
friend as they went on. "Whenever that cold, calculating countenance
comes near me I feel frost-bitten and long to fly to the torrid zones."
"I suppose that's why you seek to bask in the rays of that glittering
northern light, his wife," said Hartmut with a sneer. "Can you tell me
for whom we are searching, in this weary pushing and crowding through
these heated rooms?"
"I want to find the head forester," said the prince, irritated at his
friend. "I want you to meet him, but you are in one of your bad humors
to-day. Perhaps I'll find Schönau in the arrow-room. I'll go and look at
any rate."
He left his friend abruptly, and did indeed set out for the
arrow-saloon, where the duke and duchess were, and where he hoped to
find Adelheid von Wallmoden. Unhappily for him, just at the entrance of
the room, he was once more entrapped by his aunt, who pointed
imperiously to a chair by her side. She wanted to hear all there was to
be told about the handsome and interesting young Roumanian, who had
quite won her heart, she said, and her uneasy nephew was obliged to
possess his soul in patience as he answered her many questions.
The noise and the merriment were at their height, as Hartmut now
threaded his way alone among the throng. He also sought someone, but he
was more fortunate than Prince Egon; casting a fleeting glance into the
tower-room, the entrance to which was almost hidden by portieres and
exotics, he saw the edge of a white satin train which swept the floor,
and in the next second he stood upon the threshold.
Adelheid von Wallmoden still sat on the same spot where her husband had
left her. She turned her head slowly now as some one entered.
Suddenly she sat erect, and then returned the young man's deep obeisance
with her accustomed icy bow.
"Have I disturbed you, baroness?" he asked. "I fear you sought this
room for quiet, and my intrusion was unintentional, I assure you."
"I only sought a cool place; the heat of the larger rooms seems almost
suffocating."
"I came for a like reason, but as I have not had an opportunity to greet
you before to-day, my dear madame, permit me to do so now." The words
sounded very formal. Rojanow had come a step nearer as he spoke, but he
still remained at a respectful distance. No movement of hers since he
entered had escaped him, and a singular smile lay in his eyes as he
looked steadily at the young wife.
She had made a motion as if to rise and depart, but the thought that
such a sudden course could only be constructed into flight, restrained
her in time. So she leaned back in her chair again and bent over a
branch of great purple-red camelias.
As she plucked a blossom, she answered his question carelessly enough,
but her face had assumed the same look of determination and force which
it wore the morning on which she stood for a second in the middle of the
forest brook. Then she had stepped knee deep into the water rather than
accept his services. Here in the castle, with noise and motion on all
sides, there were no such obstacles to be overcome, and now the same
man, with his dark glance, stood opposite her, and never took his eyes
off her face.
"Will you remain much longer at Rodeck?" she asked, with the
conventional tone and manner usually accorded a chance acquaintance.
"Probably for a few weeks yet. As long as the duke is at Fürstenstein,
Prince Adelsberg will not be apt to desert his hunting lodge. Later I
intend accompanying him to the capital."
"And there we shall hear of you as a poet, I presume?"
"Of me, my dear baroness?"
"I heard so at least, from the prince."
"O, that is only one of Egon's ideas," said Hartmut, lightly. "He has
taken it into his head to have my 'Arivana' brought out on the stage."
"'Arivana?' A singular title."
"It is an oriental name taken from an Indian legend, but its poetical
witchery made such an impression upon me that I could not resist the
temptation to create a drama from it."
"And the heroine of this drama, is she called 'Arivana?'" asked the
baroness.
"No, that is only the name of a sacred place of refuge during the middle
ages, upon which the scene of the drama was laid. The heroine's name
is--Ada."
Rojanow spoke the name half-aloud, with a certain hesitation, and gave
her a triumphant glance as he saw the same lowering of the head over the
flowers as when he first spoke; he came a few steps nearer now while he
continued:
"I heard the name for the first time on Indian ground, and it had for me
a strangely sweet sound, so I adopted it for my character, and now I
learn here that it is, in this country, but the abbreviation of a German
name."
"Of Adelheid--yes. I was always called Ada in my father's house. But it
is not at all remarkable that the same sounds are repeated in different
languages."
The words were spoken coldly, but the speaker did not raise her eyes
from the flowers with which her hand played.
"Not at all," agreed Hartmut. "It has often been a surprise to me to
hear the same fable repeated in different countries over and over again.
The coloring is different, to be sure, but the passion, the woe, the
happiness of our human race is alike in them all."
Adelheid shrugged her shoulders.
"I won't dispute over the matter with a poet, but doubt it,
notwithstanding. I think our German legends wear a different countenance
from the dreamy tales of India."
"Perhaps, but when you study them deeply, you will discover the same
features in both. These common features are manifest in the legend of
'Arivana,' at least. The principal character is that of a young priest
who has consecrated himself, body and soul, to the service of his
divinity, to the holy fire, but in time he is mastered by an earthly
love with all its glow and passion, till his priestly vows dissolve in
its consuming flame."
He stood opposite her, quietly and respectfully, but his voice had an
odd, covert sound, as if something of deeper significance were hidden
beneath this story. Frau von Wallmoden looked up at him suddenly, and
said, gazing earnestly into his face:
"And--the end?"
"The end is death, as in all these legends. The knowledge of the broken
vows comes to light and the guilty ones are offered as a sacrifice to an
enraged deity--the priest perishes in the flames with the woman whom he
loves."
There was a second's pause after the last words were spoken, then
Adelheid rose abruptly; she would end this conversation at once.
"You are right; no doubt the legends do resemble ours; it is only the
old story of sin and atonement."
"Do you call that sin, my dear lady?" Hartmut dropped suddenly the more
formal madame or baroness. "Men call it sin and punish it accordingly,
without any premonition that such a punishment will lead to perfect
happiness. To pass away in a flame of fire after one has enjoyed the
highest earthly joys, and is yet surrounded by them in death. Ah! that
is to die like a god--far better such a death than a long, stupid,
humdrum existence. Eternal, undying love rises like a flaming brand to
the heavens above, in defiance of mankind's sentence--do you not think
such an ending is enviable?"
Adelheid's face was pale, but her voice was as steady and cool as ever,
as she answered:
"No, nothing is enviable but death for a high and holy duty. One can
forgive sin, but can never admire it."
Hartmut bit his lips and gave the slender, white robed figure who stood
near him a threatening glance.
"Ah, what a hard sentence to meet my drama at the outset, for I have
expended all my strength in transfiguring just such love and death. What
if the world's judgment is like yours--I beg your pardon, madame."
He crossed to the divan upon which she had been sitting, where her fan
and the camelia blossom yet lay.
"I thank you," said Adelheid, extending her hand for them, but he only
handed her the fan.
"I beg your pardon--I wrote my 'Arivana' upon the veranda of a little
Indian house where these lovely flowers were gleaming through the dark
foliage on all sides, and to-day they greet me here again in the cold
north. May I not keep this blossom?"
Adelheid made a little impatient motion.
"No; for what reason?"
"For what reason? As a reminder of the harsh sentence which my poem has
received from the lips of a woman who bears the same name as my heroine.
There were many white blossoms, baroness, but you broke off
unconsciously the deep purple-red. Poets are superstitious above all
things. Let me keep this as a token that my work may yet find favor in
your eyes, when you learn to know it. You do not know how much it
contains."
"Herr Rojanow, I--"
It was apparent to him, both from her voice and manner, that she meant
to refuse his petition, so he interrupted her in a subdued, but
passionate tone:
"What is a single blossom to you which you plucked heedlessly and cast
aside so carelessly? To me--baroness, as a favor--I beg you, baroness."
He stood close by her side. The witchery of voice and eye which had so
often overcome all obstacles in his boyhood's days, and which had then
been exercised, unconsciously, had become a great power in these later
years, and one which he knew how to use only too well.
His voice had again that soft, persuasive tone which fell on her ear
like music, and his eyes, those dark, fathomless eyes, were fixed on the
young wife with a half melancholy, half pleading expression. Adelheid's
face had grown very white now, but she did not answer.
"Please," he repeated, in a lower, more pleading tone, as he pressed his
lips to the purple-red blossom; but this last motion seemed to break the
spell. Adelheid reached her hand out suddenly.
"I must insist upon your giving me my flower, Herr Rojanow. It is for my
husband."
"Indeed, then, I beg your pardon, madame."
He held out the flower to her with a profound bow, and she took it with
a scarcely perceptible motion of the head, then the heavy white train of
her robe rustled past him--he was alone.
All in vain! Nothing affected this icy nature. Hartmut stamped his foot
in a fury. Scarcely fifteen minutes ago he had asserted to Prince Egon
that he could sing to please the ear of any woman. Now he had sung again
that song which never before had failed him, and all to no purpose. But
this proud, arrogant man could not believe that the game which he so
often won had been lost this time, and in this knowledge lay his
determination to win yet at all hazards.
And should it only remain a game? He had not called himself to account
as yet, but in the intense interest which this beautiful woman excited
within him, there was a strong mixture of hate. There had been an
antagonistic feeling on that first day in the wood, and since then he
had been repelled and attracted by turns; it was just that which spurred
him on.
Love, the holy, pure significance of that word, was a stranger to the
heart of Zalika's son. He had learned much that was harmful at the side
of his mother, who had made such a shameless spectacle of her own
husband's love; and the many women who were her companions and
associates in her Roumanian home, but echoed her sentiments concerning
love and fidelity. Their later life, unstable and adventurous, with no
ground under their feet, had ruined altogether all ideals of happiness
and love in the young man's breast; he learned contempt before he
learned love, and now he received his well-deserved humiliation as an
insult.
"You keep me at bay now," he murmured. "You are battling against
yourself. I have felt it and seen it, but in such a battle the man is
always victor."
A slight rustle of a curtain made him turn round. It was the ambassador
in search of his wife, whom he thought still here; he stood on the
threshold and threw a hasty glance around the room, when he caught sight
of Hartmut. He stopped and hesitated for a moment, then he said half
aloud:
"Herr Rojanow--"
"Your Excellency!"
"I would like to speak to you alone for a few minutes."
"I am at your service."
Wallmoden stepped forward into the room now, but he took up his position
so that he could keep his eye on the entrance.
It was scarcely necessary, for the doors into the dining-hall were just
opened, and the room adjoining the tower-chamber was deserted.
"I am surprised to see you here," began the ambassador, in the subdued,
but severely cold tone which he had used the day of their first meeting
at Hochberg, and it brought the blood to the younger man's brow to-day,
as it had done then. He straightened himself proudly as he answered:
"And why, your Excellency?"
"That question is superfluous; in any case I did not imagine that I
should be forced into the position of being presented to you by Prince
Adelsberg."
"It was I who was forced," answered Hartmut, sharply and promptly. "I do
not suppose you consider me an intruder? You know full well that I have
a right to be here."
"Hartmut von Falkenried certainly had a right--but all that is changed."
"Herr von Wallmoden!"
"Pardon me, but not so loud," interrupted the ambassador. "We can be
heard here easily, and you would certainly not like strange ears to hear
the name which I have just spoken."
"I am bearing my mother's name at present, to which I have certainly a
right. When I laid aside the other, it was out of respect--"
"To your father," interrupted Wallmoden, impressively.
That was an admonition which Hartmut found hard to bear. "Yes," he
answered curtly, "and I confess it would be painful to me if I should be
forced to mention--"
"And with reason; your _rôle_ here would, in that event, be played to
the end."
Rojanow stepped close to the ambassador with an angry movement, as he
retorted:
"You are the friend of my father's youth, Herr von Wallmoden, and I, in
my boyhood days, called you uncle. But you forget that I am no longer
the boy whom you could order about and censure at pleasure. The man
looks on all that as an insult."
"I purpose neither to insult you, nor to make mention of former
associations which have no longer any existence for either of us," said
the ambassador. "I sought this interview in order that I might explain
to you that it is not possible for me, in my official position, to see
you in constant intercourse with the Court and keep silence. It will be
my duty to explain all to the duke."
"Explain all? All what?"
"Many things about which none of the people here, not even your friend
Prince Adelsberg, know. Listen to me, Herr Rojanow. I will not do this
except it is forced upon me, for I have an old and dear friend to spare.
I know how a certain occurrence struck him down ten years ago, an
occurrence which is buried and forgotten these many years in our country
now; but if all this was brought up and gossiped over again--Colonel
Falkenried would die."
Hartmut paled perceptibly, and the scornful expression faded from his
lips.
"He would die!" the words rang in his ears. He knew only too well how
true they were, and for the moment all defiance died within him.
"It is to my father that I am answerable, at any rate," he responded,
controlling his voice with an effort. "To him alone and to no other."
"He will scarcely call you to account--his son is dead to him. But we
can let that rest. I speak especially of those later years which your
mother and you spent in Rome and Paris, where you lived at a glittering
pace, in spite of the fact that the Roumanian estate had been sold under
the hammer."
"You seem to know all the particulars," retorted Rojanow, highly
indignant now. "We were not aware that we were under such vigilant
inspection. As to our manner of life, we lived as best pleased
ourselves, upon the remnant of the fortune which was saved from the
wreck."
"There was nothing saved, the whole fortune was squandered, even to the
last heller."
"That is not true," interrupted Hartmut stormily.
"It is true. Don't you think I know more about it than you?" The
ambassador's voice was sharp and sneering now. "It is very possible that
Frau Rojanow did not consider it necessary to explain to her son the
means by which she obtained her gold; better to leave him in ignorance.
I know from whence the money came--if she did not tell you, so much the
better for you."
"Have a care, sir, about insulting my mother," the young man was beside
himself now, "or I may forget your gray hairs, and demand satisfaction."
"For what? For an assertion which I can back with indisputable proof at
any moment? Let us put aside all such mad folly and say no more on that
subject. She was your mother and she is dead, so her past shall be a
dead letter to us. I have only this one question to put to you, whether
you will, after this conversation, remain here and become one of the
circle which Prince Adelsberg has opened for you?"
Hartmut had become deadly pale at the allusion made to his mother, and
the source from which she had obtained money, and the first stare with
which he gazed at the speaker showed only too clearly that he had no
knowledge of anything disreputable, but at the last question he began to
recover himself. He cast an almost insane glance at his enemy, and a
wild determination sounded in his voice as he answered:
"Yes, Herr Wallmoden, I shall remain."
The ambassador had not expected this answer; he had thought after his
conversation the matter would be ended.
He evinced no surprise, however, and said:
"Really? So you decide to remain? You are accustomed to play high, and
expect to do it here? We will have to interfere with that, I fear.
Better think it well over before you decide finally."
With that he turned quickly on his heel and left the room, just in time
to meet the head forester at its entrance.
"Where have you been hiding yourself, Herbert?" Schönau asked
impatiently. "I have been searching the whole place for you."
"I went to the tower-chamber in search of my wife."
"She's in the dining-room with all the rest of the world, but you have
been missed already. Come, it is time that we got something to eat."
With which the head forester took hold of his brother-in-law's arm and
led him away, after his usual jolly manner.
Hartmut stood where von Wallmoden had left him. His breath came fast and
thick, and he was almost stifled with the feelings of shame, and hate,
and revolt, which surged within him. The ambassador's significant
speeches had crushed him utterly, although he had hardly grasped their
full meaning. They tore aside the veil with which he, half
unconsciously, half purposely, had enveloped himself. He had believed
implicitly what his mother told him concerning the portion of their
fortune which was saved to them, and which enabled them to live and
travel. But there were times when he had chosen to close his eyes rather
than enter into investigations.
When his mother's hand had torn him so suddenly from his father's side,
when after the hard discipline of obedience and duty, he had been
plunged into a life of boundless freedom, he had allowed himself an
unchecked rein, having no one to whom to account for his actions. He was
too young for reflection or judgment, and later--but it was too late for
him then, and habit had woven a net about him which could not be
destroyed. Now for the first time it was shown him clearly and
definitely what that life was which he had led so long; the life of an
adventurer, and as an adventurer he was to be expelled from society.
But above all the shame was the sense of ignominy and defeat, the
feeling of intense hatred toward the man who had told him the truth.
That unholy heritage from his mother, the hot, wild, passionate blood,
which had proven so fatal to the boy, welled up like a stream of fire in
the man's breast and extinguished all feeling but that of revenge.
Hartmut's handsome features were still disfigured with passion and
anger, when, with compressed lips, he finally left the tower room.
He knew and felt but one thing, that he must have revenge, revenge at
any price.
It was late when the guests arose from the table. The duke and duchess
retired soon after, and carriage after carriage ascended the castle
hill, and descended soon after with its full complement of departing
guests; lights were extinguished, and bolts and bars were drawn, and
Fürstenstein was soon enveloped in silence and darkness.
From the rooms occupied by Baron von Wallmoden and his wife lights were
still shining. Adelheid stood at the window peering into the darkness.
She yet wore her rich court gown, and as she leaned her head against the
pane, lost in thought, her attitude was one of weariness and languor.
Wallmoden sat at his writing table, reading hastily the dispatches and
letters which had arrived during the day. One or two seemed to contain
matter of importance, for he did not place them with the pile which were
to be answered or destroyed early in the morning, but took up his pen
and made a check across them in red ink; then he arose and crossed the
room to his wife.
"This comes unexpectedly," he said. "I'll have to go to Berlin at once."
Adelheid turned round surprised.
"This is very sudden."
"Yes, I had hoped to settle the matter by letter, but the minister
desires a personal conference. I must take my leave of the duke early in
the morning, and set off at once. I'll be away about eight days, I
presume."
In the shadow of the curtain Adelheid's face could not be seen clearly,
but one could fancy a sigh of relief escaped her, as if her heart was to
be lightened of a burden.
"At what hour do we start?" she asked quickly. "I must give my maid her
orders at once."
"We? It's a purely business affair, and I am going alone."
"But that won't prevent my accompanying you!"
"There would be no object in that. I'll only be away a week or two."
"But I--I'd like to see Berlin again."
"What a whim!" her husband answered, shrugging his shoulders. "I'll have
so many claims upon my time that I could not have you with me."
The young wife had stepped to the table, and stood in the glare of the
lamp. She was very pale now, and her voice had a pleading sound as she
said:
"Very well, then, I will go home. But it is not possible for me to
remain at Fürstenstein alone, without you."
"Alone!" The ambassador gave her a puzzled look. "You remain with our
kinsfolk whose guests we are. Since when have you become so anxious for
protection? That is a peculiarity which I had never observed in you
until now. I don't understand you, Adelheid; it's a most singular
caprice which you have taken into your head, this desire to accompany
me."
"Well, call it a caprice. But let me go with you, Herbert--please let me
go."
She laid her hand beseechingly on his arm, and her eyes had an intense
and anxious expression, as she looked at her husband. There was a
superior, almost sneering smile on his lips, as he answered her:
"Now I understand it. The scene with the princess was so unpleasant to
you that you dread other skirmishes of a like nature. You must steel
yourself against such sensitiveness, my child; you should see that for
this very reason, it is imperative for you to remain. At court every
word, every glance signifies, and your sudden departure might give rise
to any kind of a report. You must hold your ground from the very start
at court, or you will find your difficulties increase rather than
diminish."
The wife's hand dropped slowly from her husband's arm, and her eyes sank
to the ground, as he refused the first request she had preferred since
their married life of only a few short months.
"Stand my ground?" she repeated, in a low voice. "That I shall ever do,
but I hoped you would be at my side."
"That is, for the moment, not possible, as you see. As for the rest, you
have shown to-day that you know how to defend yourself. And I have no
doubt that the hint which I found it necessary to give you, will bear
fruit, and that you will, in future, be guarded in your answers. At any
rate, you must stay here until I return."
Adelheid was silent. She saw that nothing was to be gained by further
speech. Wallmoden stepped back to the writing-table and put aside his
papers, and locked his drawers with his usual precision; then he took up
the two letters, with their red checks, and folded them together.
"One thing more, Adelheid," he said, casually, "Prince Adelsberg was
most noticeable in his attentions to you to-day; he was always near
you."
"Do you wish me to keep him at a distance?" she asked, indifferently.
"No, indeed, only keep him within bounds, so that there will be no
unnecessary talk. No harm will come to you from being in his company. We
do not stand on the same plane as the burgers, and it would be ludicrous
for me, in my position, to enact the jealous husband toward every man
who pays my wife attention. I leave all that to your discretion; I have
unbounded faith in your tact."
This sounded very reasonable, very temperate, and above all, very
indifferent. No one could accuse Herr von Wallmoden of jealousy towards
the young prince, whose undisguised admiration caused him no second
thought; and, as he had just said, he had unbounded faith in his wife's
tact.
"I will send these telegrams myself," he said. "Since the duke's arrival
there's a telegraph office in the castle. You should ring for your maid,
my child; you look tired and worn--good-night."
With that he left her, but Adelheid did not follow his advice. She
returned once more to the window, and a bitter, pained expression lay on
her face. She had never before felt so keenly that she was to her
husband nothing more than a glittering bauble, to be exhibited by him to
prove how wisely he had chosen a wife; she was to be treated with the
greatest courtesy and politeness, because a princely fortune had been
received from her hand; but as a woman she was to be refused the most
trifling request with equal courtesy, because it did not suit his
pleasure.
The night was dark, and the low clouds which surrounded the forest
heights were black and heavy; only here and there, where a break
occurred, was a star to be seen glimmering far and faint in the distant
heavens. The face which peered out into the darkness had not the proud,
cold look which the world knew, but a disturbed, anxious expression,
lacking altogether that repose which was its chief characteristic at
most times.
The wife had both hands pressed against her breast, as if in pain. She
would have flown from that dark power which she felt was upon her. She
had sought her husband's protection, had plead for it--in vain. He went
and left her alone, and the other remained, with his dark, demoniacal
eyes, with his voice and tones, which exercised such a singular,
irresistible influence over her.