THE MYSTERY OF ROZSNYO
At about nine o’clock that evening the two friends set out through the
forest for the Schloss Rozsnyo. They had been careful to utter no hint
of their intention which might be overheard by Bela, Von Tressen’s
soldier servant, and their nocturnal expedition was ostensibly to the
feeding grounds of the deer, which in those regions are stalked at
night.
A cloudy sky with occasional bright intervals suited their purpose
well, and the forest paths had become sufficiently familiar to Von
Tressen to enable him to guide his companion without difficulty across
the wooded valley to the elevation on which Rozsnyo stood.
As they drew near the castle the moon shone out brilliantly for a few
minutes, affording them, from their dark covert, a magnificent view
of the romantic building perched high above them. A curious edifice
blending, as it did, antique and modern styles of architecture, the
rough solidity of the ancient fortified dwelling with the fantastic
pretentiousness of the Gothic of yesterday. But the whole effect was
picturesque enough, especially as seen by moonlight.
“A fine lair for a beast of prey,” was Galabin’s comment. “What if the
inside should be as foul as the outside is fair?”
“Not an easy place to reconnoitre,” Von Tressen observed, having taken
in with a professional scrutiny the situation of the castle and its
points of approach.
“No,” Galabin replied; “the undertaking is by no means easy or safe,
as the Chancellor gave me clearly to understand. Still, I mean to go
through with it, although there is no reason why one need act with
precipitation.”
Keeping within the dark fringe of the wood, they began the ascent of
the hill and soon had reached the small plateau on which Rozsnyo stood.
As the castle came into view from the side approach the two men could
get a very good idea of its real size and form. It was a large rambling
structure, covering far more space than apparently its real size and
capacity would warrant. Indeed, the idea in its construction seemed to
have been distance; for one part, that is, to lie as far from the other
extremity as possible. From their point of observation in the valley
below, the two men had noticed a light in one of the windows; here on
the inner side all was dark: there seemed no sign of life about the
place.
The principal approach to the castle was by a great bridge of wood
and iron thrown over a moat drained of its water and planted with
flower-beds in curiously modern contrast to the grey massive walls
which rose from it.
All was still and silent save for the rustling of the pines as an
occasional gust swept through them. The two men emerged boldly into the
open which divided the surrounding wood from the castle precincts.
“We are doing no harm in strolling round the place,” Galabin said. “Let
us make a tour of inspection and keep our eyes open.”
Keeping on the outer edge of what had been the moat, they followed the
circuit of the building until they came round again on the farther side
of the declivity of rock which dropped almost sheer down to the valley.
Nothing but a general idea of the castle rewarded their scrutiny. All
was dark and silent.
“Not a very promising place to investigate,” Von Tressen laughed. “We
had better go back again as we came. To try and get down into the
valley from this side looks like breaking our necks.”
“Yes,” Galabin assented grimly. “The vulture has well chosen his eyrie.
But for a great house there seems to be a singular absence of life
about the place.”
A heavy bank of clouds had now drifted over the moon, and the darkness,
intensified by the wall of pine woods, was so thick that the two men
had some difficulty in finding their way round the moat again, at least
without stumbling down the grass-grown bank.
Suddenly Von Tressen, who was in front, stopped, so abruptly that
Galabin cannoned against him.
“Look!”
A ray of light had shot out across the moat at a point some twenty
yards in front of them. It came from the castle, and was rendered more
vivid by the intense darkness elsewhere. The two diverged from the path
now until they came opposite to the spot whence the light proceeded. It
streamed from a window at some distance from the ground in an otherwise
blank wall which connected two Gothic towers. There was nothing, of
course, mysterious or even remarkable in the appearance of the light,
which was, indeed, rather to be expected than the utter darkness in
which all the back part of the castle had been shrouded, yet somehow
both men felt that there was an element of mystery about it. For one
thing, the room whence it came was situated at about the most distant
point from that other lighted window they had seen from below, while
all the intervening block of buildings seemed dark and silent as a ruin.
“I should like,” said Galabin, “to take the liberty of looking inside
that room.”
“Impossible, so far as one can see,” Von Tressen replied. “There is
nothing but sheer wall. Still, we might creep across and examine it.”
Keeping well outside the band of light which stretched slantwise across
the moat, they descended into its hollow and crept up the other side.
So much of it, that is, as they found practicable. For the angle made
by the inner bank only rose about eight or ten feet from the bottom
and then continued in sheer, straight stone wall. The two men were now
directly underneath the window from which the light passed high over
their heads; but, although they listened intently they could detect
no sound from the room above them. To think of climbing the wall was
absurd. At that part, at any rate, the stones were smoothly laid
and faced, no hold for hands or feet was possible. After a thorough
examination both men agreed that it was not feasible.
“If only some of yonder trees grew this side of the moat,” Von Tressen
observed.
“Ah!” An idea occurred to his friend. “Suppose we climb one as it is
and try what we can see. We shall at least get on a level with the
window.”
Von Tressen nodded, and they stealthily recrossed the dip and regained
the shelter of the wood.
“Let me go up and take an observation,” Von Tressen proposed. “I used
to be a good climber.”
Selecting the foremost tree opposite the window, the Lieutenant with
some little difficulty swarmed up the bare trunk. Galabin stood below
eagerly watching his progress, which became easier as he got higher and
the stem grew narrower. At length he calculated that Von Tressen must
be on a level with the window, and drew back to measure the distance
with his eye. As he did so, suddenly and silently the light vanished.
He turned quickly, only to see nothing but a mass of black wall rising
indistinct in the darkness. It was some minutes before he heard his
companion descending; perhaps he had lingered in the hope that the
light might re-appear, for assuredly nothing was to be seen in its
absence.
“Just too late,” Von Tressen exclaimed regretfully, as he reached the
ground. “It was provoking; but, never mind, we may have better luck
another night.”
“Yes; we will come to-morrow,” Galabin said. “Although, after all,
there may be nothing worth troubling to see. But I must confess----”
He stopped as Von Tressen knocked his arm sharply. An extraordinary
thing had happened. For the moon coming out in its full brightness
showed the wall blank now, without a trace of the window whence the
light had shone.
At first neither man could realize it nor believe his eyes. Then, as
they became certain of the strange disappearance they looked at each
other in amazement.
“Where has the window gone to?” Von Tressen exclaimed, with a short
laugh.
Galabin shook his head. “Rather mysterious, is it not? Let us cross
over again and make sure that it is not an optical delusion.”
In a few seconds they were under the wall, looking in vain for a sign
of the window.
“It was directly above us here,” Von Tressen said. “I would swear to
that. I marked it by the triangular flower-bed. But where is it now?”
The dark wall above them presented an unbroken surface of stone. The
moon shone out for a moment and proved it clearly. There was no window.
“Well,” observed Galabin, as they turned away from their puzzled
search, “at least we have found something mysteriously interesting
to follow up. Count Zarka is evidently a man worth the trouble of
watching. We will come again to-morrow night, and may have better luck.”
So without seeing anything further to excite their curiosity they
returned through the forest to their camping-ground.