The more I thought upon my strange visit to the Palace Revecce that
evening, the more puzzled I was by it. It had so many sides, and each so
complex, that I scarcely knew which presented the most curious feature.
What Nikola's real reason had been for inviting me to call upon him, and
why he should have told me the story, which I felt quite certain was
that of his own life, was more than I could understand. Moreover, why,
having told it me, he should have so suddenly requested me to think no
more about it, only added to my bewilderment. The incident of the two
men, and the extraordinary conjuring trick, for conjuring trick it
certainly was in the real meaning of the word, he had shown us, did not
help to elucidate matters. If the truth must be told it rather added to
the mystery than detracted from it. To sum it all up, I found, when I
endeavoured to fit the pieces of the puzzle together, remembering also
his strange remark concerning Miss Trevor, that I was as far from
coming to any conclusion as I had been at the beginning.
"You can have no idea how nervous I have been on your account to-night,"
said my wife, when I reached her room. "After dinner the Duke gave us a
description of Doctor Nikola's room, and told us its history. When I
thought of your being there alone with him, I must confess I felt almost
inclined to send a message to you imploring you to come home."
"That would have been a great mistake, my dear," I answered. "You would
have offended Nikola, and we don't want to do that. I am sorry the Duke
told you that terrible story. He should not have frightened you with it.
What did Gertrude Trevor think of it?"
"She did not say anything about it," my wife replied. "But I could see
that she was as frightened as I was. I am quite sure you would not get
either of us to go there, however pressing Doctor Nikola's invitation
might be. Now tell me what he wanted to see you about."
"He felt lonely and wanted some society," I answered, having resolved
that on no account would I tell her all the truth concerning my visit to
the Palace Revecce. "He also wanted me to witness something connected
with a scheme he has originated for enabling people to get out of the
country unobserved by the police. Before I left he gave me a good
example of the power he possessed."
I then described to her the arrival of the two men and the lesson Nikola
had read to the Police Agent. The portion dealing with the conjuring
trick I omitted. No good could have accrued from frightening her, and I
knew that the sort of description I should be able to give of it would
not be sufficiently impressive to enable her to see it in the light I
desired. In any other way it would have struck her as ridiculous.
"The man grows more and more extraordinary every day," she said. "And
not the least extraordinary thing about him is the way he affects other
people. For my own part I must confess that, while I fear him, I like
him; the Duke is frankly afraid of him; you are interested and repelled
in turn; while Gertrude, I fancy, regards him as a sort of supernatural
being, who may turn one into a horse or a dog at a moment's notice,
while Senor Galaghetti, with whom I had a short conversation to-day
concerning him, was so enthusiastic in his praises that for once words
failed him. He had never met any one so wonderful, he declared. He would
lay down his life for him. It would appear that, on one occasion, when
Nikola was staying at the hotel, he cured Galaghetti's eldest child of
diphtheria. The child was at the last gasp and the doctors had given
her up, when Nikola made his appearance upon the scene. What he did, or
how he did it, Galaghetti did not tell me, but it must have been
something decidedly irregular, for the other doctors were aghast and
left the house in a body. The child, however, rallied from that moment,
and, as Galaghetti proudly informed me, 'is now de artiste of great
repute upon de pianoforte in Paris.' I have never heard of her, but it
would appear that Galaghetti not only attributes her life, but also her
musical success, to the fact that Nikola was staying in the hotel at the
time when the child was taken ill. The Duke was with me when Galaghetti
told me this, and, when he heard it, he turned away with an exclamation
that sounded very like 'humbug!' I do hope that Doctor Nikola and the
Duke won't quarrel?"
As she put this in the form of a question, I felt inclined to reply with
the expression the Duke had used. I did not do so, however, but
contented myself with assuring her that she need have no fears upon that
score. A surprise, however, was in store for me.
"What have they to quarrel about?" I asked. "They have nothing in
common."
"That only proves how blind you are to what goes on around you," my wife
replied. "Have you not noticed that they _both admire Gertrude
Trevor_?"
Falling so pat upon my own thoughts, this gave me food for serious
reflection.
"How do you know that Nikola admires her?" I asked, a little sharply, I
fear, for when one has uncomfortable suspicions one is not always best
pleased to find that another shares them. A double suspicion might be
described as almost amounting to a certainty.
"I am confident of it," she replied. "Did you not notice his manner
towards her on the night of our excursion? It was most marked."
"My dear girl," I said irritably, "if you are going to begin this sort
of thing, you don't know where you will find yourself in the end. Nikola
has been a wanderer all his life. He has met people of every
nationality, of every rank and description. It is scarcely probable,
charming though I am prepared to admit she is, that he would be
attracted by our friend. Besides, I had it from his own lips this
morning that he will never marry."
"You may be just as certain as you please," she answered. "Nevertheless,
I adhere to my opinion."
Knowing what was in my own mind, and feeling that if the argument
continued I might let something slip that I should regret, I withdrew
from the field, and, having questioned her concerning certain news she
had received from England that day, bade her good-night.
Next morning we paid a visit to the Palace of the Doges, and spent a
pleasant and instructive couple of hours in the various rooms. Whatever
_Nikola's_ feelings may have been, there was by this time not the least
doubt that the Duke admired Miss Trevor. Though the lad had known her
for so short a time he was already head over ears in love. I think
Gertrude was aware of the fact, and I feel sure that she liked him, but
whether the time was not yet ripe, or her feminine instinct warned her
to play her fish for a while before attempting to land him, I cannot
say; at any rate she more than once availed herself of an opportunity
and moved away from him to take her place at my side. As you may
suppose, Glenbarth was not rendered any the happier by these manoeuvres;
indeed, by the time we left the Palace, he was as miserable a human
being as could have been found in all Venice. Before lunch, however, she
relented a little towards him, and when we sat down to the meal in
question our friend had in some measure recovered his former spirits.
Not so my wife, however; though I did not guess it, I was in for a
wigging.
"How could you treat the poor fellow so badly?" she said indignantly,
when we were alone together afterwards. "If you are not very careful
you'll spoil everything."
"Spoil what?" I inquired, as if I did not understand to what she
alluded. "You have lately developed a habit of speaking in riddles."
"Fiddle-de-dee!" she answered scornfully, "you know very well to what I
allude. I think your conduct at the Palace this morning was disgraceful.
You, a married man and a father, to try and spoil the pleasure of that
poor young man."
"But she began it," I answered in self-defence. "Did you not see that
she preferred my company to his?"
"Of course that was only make-believe," my wife replied. "You are as
well aware of that as I am."
"I know nothing of the kind," I returned. "If the girl does not know her
own mind, then it is safer that she should pretend, as she did to-day."
"She was not pretending. You know that Gertrude Trevor is as honest as
the day."
"Then you admit that she was only playing her fish?" I said.
"If you are going to be vulgar I shall leave you," she retorted; "I
don't know what you mean by 'playing her fish.' Gertrude only came to
you because she did not want to allow her liking for the Duke to appear
too conspicuous."
"It's the same thing in the end," I answered. "Believe me it is! You
describe it as not making her conduct appear too conspicuous, while I
call it 'playing her fish.' I have the best possible recollection of a
young lady who used to play quoits with me on the deck of the _Orotava_
a good many years ago. One day--we were approaching Naples at the
time--she played game after game with the doctor, and snubbed me
unmercifully."
"You know very well that I didn't mean it," she answered, with a stamp
of her foot. "You know I had to act as I did."
"I don't mind admitting that," I replied. "Nevertheless, you were
playing your fish. That night after dinner you forgave me and----"
She slipped her arm through mine and gave it a hug. I could afford to be
generous.
"Those were dear old days, were they not? I, for one, am not going to
quarrel about them. Now let us go and find the others."
We discovered them in the balcony, listening to some musicians in a
gondola below. Miss Trevor plainly hailed our coming with delight; the
Duke, however, was by no means so well pleased. He did his best,
however, to conceal his chagrin. Going to the edge of the balcony I
looked down at the boat. The musicians were four in number, two men and
two girls, and, at the moment of our putting in an appearance, one of
them was singing the "Ave Maria" from the _Cavalleria Rusticana_, in a
manner that I had seldom heard it sung before. She was a handsome girl,
and knew the value of her good looks. Beside her stood a man with a
guitar, and I gave a start as I looked at him. Did my eyes deceive me,
or was this the man who had accompanied the Police Agent to Nikola's
residence on the previous evening? I looked again and felt sure that I
could not be mistaken. He possessed the same bullet-head with the
close-cropped hair, the same clean-shaven face, and the same peculiarly
square shoulders. No! I felt sure that he was the man. But if so, what
was he doing here under our windows? One thing was quite apparent; if he
recognized me, he did not give me evidence of the fact. He played and
looked up at us without the slightest sign of recognition. To all
intents and purposes he was the picture of indifference. While they were
performing I recalled the scene of the previous night, and wondered what
had become of the police officer, and what the man below me had thought
of the curious trick Nikola had performed? It was only when they had
finished their entertainment and, having received our reward, were about
to move away that I received any information to the effect that the man
had recognized me.
"Illustrious Senora, Senorita, and Senors, I thank you," he said,
politely lifting his hat as he spoke. "Our performance has been
successful, and the obstacle which threatened it at one time has been
removed."
The gondola then passed on, and I turned to the Duke as if for an
explanation.
"At first the hall-porter was not inclined to let them sing here," the
Duke remarked, "but Miss Trevor wanted to hear them, so I sent word down
that I wished them to remain."
In spite of the explanation I understood to what the man had referred,
but for the life of me I could not arrive at his reason for visiting our
hotel that day. I argued that it might have been all a matter of chance,
but I soon put that idea aside as absurd. The coincidence was too
remarkable.
At lunch my wife announced that she had heard that morning that Lady
Beltringham, the wife of our neighbour in the Forest, was in Venice, and
staying at a certain hotel further along the Grand Canal.
"Gertrude and I are going to call upon her this afternoon," she said,
"so that you two gentlemen must amuse yourselves as best you can without
us."
"That is very easily done," I answered; "the Duke is going to have his
hair cut, and I am going to witness the atrocity. You may expect to see
him return not unlike that man with the guitar in the boat this
morning."
"By the way," said Glenbarth, "that reminds me that I was going to point
out a curious thing to you concerning that man. Did you notice, Miss
Trevor, that when we were alone together in the balcony he did not once
touch his instrument, but directly Hatteras and Lady Hatteras arrived,
he jumped up and began to play?"
This confirmed my suspicions. I had quite come to the conclusion by this
time that the man had only made his appearance before the hotel in order
to be certain of my address. Yet, I had to ask myself, if he were in
Nikola's employ, why should he have been anxious to do so?
An hour later the ladies departed on their polite errand, and the Duke
and I were left together. He was not what I should call a good
companion. He was in an irritable mood, and nothing I could do or say
seemed to comfort him. I knew very well what was the matter, and when
we had exhausted English politics, the rise and fall of Venice, Ruskin,
and the advantages of foreign travel, I mentioned incidentally the name
of Miss Trevor. The frown vanished from his face, and he answered like a
coherent mortal.
"Look here, Hatteras," he said, with a fine burst of confidence, "you
and I have been friends for a good many years, and I think we know each
other about as well as two men can do."
"That is so," I answered, wondering what he was driving at; "we have
been through some strange adventures together, and should certainly know
each other. I hope that you are not going to propose that we should
depart on some harum-scarum expedition like that you wanted me to join
you in last year, to the Pamirs, was it not? If so, I can tell you once
and for all that my lady won't hear of it."
"Confound the Pamirs!" he replied angrily. "Is it likely that I should
think of going there just now? You misunderstand my meaning entirely.
What I want is a sympathetic friend, who can enter into my troubles, and
if possible help me out of them."
For the life of me I could not forbear from teasing him for a little
longer.
"My dear old fellow," I said, "you know that I will do anything I
possibly can to help you. Take my advice and get rid of the man at once.
As I told you in my letter to you before you left England, it is only
misplaced kindness to keep him on. You know very well that he has been
unfaithful to you for some years past. Then why allow him to continue in
his wrong-doing? The smash will come sooner or later."
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"Well, I suppose your trouble is connected with the agent you were
telling me of yesterday. The man who, it was discovered, had been
cooking the accounts, selling your game, pocketing the proceeds, and
generally feathering his own nest at your expense."
An ominous frown gathered upon my friend's forehead.
"Upon my word," he said, "I really believe you are taking leave of your
senses. Do you think I am bothering myself at such a time about that
wretched Mitchell? Let him sell every beast upon the farms, every head
of game, and, in point of fact, let him swindle me as he likes, and I
wouldn't give a second thought to him."
"I am very sorry," I answered penitently, rolling the leaf of my cigar.
"Then it was the yacht you were thinking about? You have had what I
consider a very good offer for her. Let her go! You are rich enough to
be able to build another, and the work will amuse you. You want
employment of some sort."
"I am not thinking of the yacht either," he growled. "You know that as
well as I do."
"How should I know it?" I answered. "I am not able to tell what is in
your mind. I do not happen to be like Nikola."
"You are singularly obtuse to-day," he asserted, throwing what remained
of his cigar into the Canal and taking another from his case.
"Look here," I said, "you're pitching into me because I can't appreciate
your position. Now how am I likely to be able to do so, considering that
you've told me nothing about it? Before we left London you informed me
that the place you had purchased in Warwickshire was going to prove your
chief worry in life. I said, 'sell it again.' Then you found that your
agent in Yorkshire was not what he might be. I advised you to get rid of
him. You would not do so because of his family. Then you confessed in a
most lugubrious fashion that your yacht was practically becoming
unseaworthy by reason of her age. I suggested that you should sell her
to Deeside, who likes her, or part with her for a junk. You vowed you
would not do so because she was a favourite. Now you are unhappy, and I
naturally suppose that it must be one of those things which is causing
you uneasiness. You scout the idea. What, therefore, am I to believe?
Upon my word, my friend, if I did not remember that you have always
declared your abhorrence of the Sex, I should begin to think you must be
in love."
He looked at me out of the corner of his eye. I pretended not to notice
it, however, and still rolled the leaf of my cigar.
"Would it be such a very mad thing if I did fall in love?" he asked at
last. "My father did so before me, and I believe my grandfather did
also. You, yourself, committed the same indiscretion."
"And you have seen the miserable result?"
"I have observed one of the happiest couples in the world," he replied.
"But, joking apart, Hatteras, I want to talk the matter over with you
seriously. I don't mind telling you at once, as between friend and
friend, that I want to marry Miss Trevor."
I endeavoured to look surprised, but I fear the attempt was a failure.
"May I remind you," I said, "that you have known her barely a week? I
don't want to discourage you, but is not your affection of rather quick
growth?"
"It is, but it does not mean that I am any the less sincere. I tell you
candidly, Dick, I have never seen such a girl in my life. She would make
any man happy."
"Very likely, but would any man make her happy?"
His face fell, and he shifted uneasily in his chair.
"Confound you," he said, "you put everything in a new light. Why should
I not be able to make her happy? There are lots of women who would give
their lives to be a Duchess!"
"I admit that," I answered. "I don't fancy, however, your rank will make
much difference with Miss Trevor. When a woman is a lady, and in love,
she doesn't mind very much whether the object of her affections is a
Duke or a chimney-sweep. Don't make the mistake of believing that a
Dukedom counts for everything where the heart is concerned. We outsiders
should have no chance at all if that were the case."
"But, Hatteras," he said, "I didn't mean that. I'm not such a cad as to
imagine that Miss Trevor would marry me simply because I happen to have
a handle to my name. I want to put the matter plainly before you. I have
told you that I love her, do you think there is any chance of her taking
a liking to me?"
"Now that you have told me what is in your mind," I answered, "I can
safely state my opinion. Mind you, I know nothing about the young lady's
ideas, but if I were a young woman, and an exceedingly presentable
young man--you may thank me for the compliment afterwards--were to lay
his heart at my feet, especially when that heart is served up on
strawberry leaves and five-pound notes, I fancy I should be inclined to
think twice before I discouraged his advances. Whether Miss Trevor will
do so, however, is quite another matter."
"Then you are not able to give me any encouragement?"
"I will wish you God-speed upon your enterprise," I said, "if that is
any satisfaction to you. I cannot do more."
As I said it I held out my hand, which he took and shook.
"God bless you, old man," he said, "you don't know what all this means
to me. I've suffered agonies these last two days. I believe I should go
mad if it continued. Yesterday she was kindness itself. To-day she will
scarcely speak to me. I believe Lady Hatteras takes my side?"
I was not to be caught napping.
"You must remember that Lady Hatteras herself is an impressionable young
woman," I answered. "She likes you and believes in you, and because she
does she thinks her friend ought to do so also. Now look here, your
Grace----"
"You needn't put on any side of that kind," he answered reproachfully.
"I believe I am talking to the Duke of Glenbarth," I returned.
"You are talking to your old friend, the man who went round the world
with you, if that's what you mean," he answered. "What is it you have to
say?"
"I want you to plainly understand that Miss Trevor is my guest. I want
you also to try to realize, however difficult it may be, that you have
only known her a very short time. She is a particularly nice girl, as
you yourself have admitted. It would be scarcely fair, therefore, if I
were to permit you to give her the impression that you were in love with
her until you have really made up your mind. Think it well over. Take
another week, or shall we say a fortnight? A month would be better
still."
He groaned in despair.
"You might as well say a year while you are about it. What is the use of
my waiting even a week when I know my own mind already?"
"Because you must give your affection time to set. Take a week. If at
the end of that time you are still as much in earnest as you are now,
well, the matter will be worth thinking about. You can then speak to the
young lady or not, as you please. On the other hand, should your
opinion have changed, then I have been your only confidant, and no harm
has been done. If she accepts you, I can honestly say that no one will
be more delighted than myself. If not, you must look elsewhere, and then
she must marry the man she likes better. Do you agree?"
"As I can't help myself I suppose I must," he answered. "But my position
during the next week is not likely to be a very cheerful one."
"I don't at all see why," I replied. "Lots of others have been compelled
to do their courting under harder auspices. Myself for instance. Here
you are staying in the same house as the object of your affections. You
meet her almost every hour of the day; you have innumerable
opportunities of paying your court to her, and yet with all these
advantages you abuse your lot."
"I know I am an ungrateful beast," he said. "But, by Jove, Dick, when
one is as much in love as I am, and with the most adorable woman in the
world, and matters don't seem to go right, one ought to be excused if
one feels inclined to quarrel with somebody."
"Quarrel away with all your heart," I answered. "And now I am going down
with you to the hairdresser. After that we'll go to the piazza."
"I suppose I must," he said, rising from his chair with a fine air of
resignation. "Though what fun you can discover in that crowd I cannot
for the life of me imagine."
I did not remind him that on the previous afternoon he had declared it
to be the most amusing sight in Europe. That would have been an unfair
advantage to have taken, particularly as I had punished him enough
already. We accordingly procured our hats and sticks, and having secured
a gondola, set off. It was a lovely afternoon, and the Grand Canal was
crowded. As we passed the entrance to the Rio del Consiglio, I stole a
glance at the Palace Revecce. No gondola was at the door, so whether
Nikola was at home or abroad I could not say. When Glenbarth had been
operated upon we proceeded to the piazza of Saint Mark, which we reached
somewhat before the usual afternoon promenade. The band had not
commenced to play, and the idlers were few in number. Having engaged two
chairs at one of the tables we sat down and ordered coffee. The duke was
plainly ill at ease. He fretted and fidgeted continually. His eyes
scarcely wandered from the steps of the lagoon, and every gondola that
drew up received his scrutinizing attention. When at last two ladies
disembarked and made their way across the stones towards Florian's
_cafe_, where we were seated, I thought he would have made an
exhibition of himself.
Lady Beltringham, it would appear, had arrived, but was so fatigued by
her long journey that she was unable to receive visitors.
"We returned almost immediately to the hotel," said my wife
reproachfully. "We thought you would have waited for us there."
Glenbarth looked at me as if nothing I could ever do would make up for
the enormity of my offence. He then described to Miss Trevor some
wonderful photographs he had discovered that morning in a certain shop
on the other side of the piazza. She questioned him concerning them, and
I suggested that they should go off and overhaul them. This they did,
and when they had departed my wife produced some letters for me she had
taken from the rack at the hotel. I looked at the writing upon the
envelope of the first, but for a moment could not recall where or when I
had seen it before. Then I opened it and withdrew the contents.
"Why, it's from George Anstruther," I exclaimed when I had examined the
signature. "He is in Algiers."
"But what is the letter about?" my wife inquired. "You have not heard
from him for so long."
"I'll read it," I said, and began as follows--
"MY DEAR HATTERAS,
"Here I am in the most charming place on the whole Mediterranean,
and I ought to know, for I've seen and loathed all the others. My
villa overlooks the sea, and my yacht rides at anchor in the bay.
There are many nice people here, and not the least pleasant is my
very good friend, Don Jose de Martinos, who is leaving to-day for
his first visit to Venice, _via_ Nice, and I understand from him
that he is to stay at your hotel. He is a delightful creature; has
seen much of the world, and if you will admit him to the circle of
your acquaintance, I don't think you will regret it. I need not
bore either myself or you by repeating the hackneyed phrase to the
effect that any civility you show him will be considered a kindness
to myself, etc., etc. Remember me most kindly to Lady Hatteras, and
"Believe me to be,
"Ever sincerely yours,
"GEORGE ANSTRUTHER."
My wife uttered a little cry of vexation.
"Pleasant though he may prove, I cannot help saying that I am sorry Don
Jose Martinos is coming," she said. "Our little party of four was so
happily arranged, and who knows but that a fifth may upset its peace
altogether?"
"But he is Anstruther's friend," I said in expostulation. "One must be
civil to one's friends' friends."
"I do not at all see why," she answered. "Because we like Mr. Anstruther
it does not follow that we shall like his friend."
At that moment the young couple were to be observed crossing the piazza
in our direction. Glenbarth carried a parcel under his arm.
"I don't think there is much doubt about that affair," said my wife, as
she regarded them approvingly.
"Don't be too sure," I answered. "There is many a slip 'twixt the cup
and the lip, and there is another old saying to the effect that those
who live longest see most."
One is sometimes oracular even in jest.