THE RED GODS CALL.
“Are you in a tremendous hurry? Could you spare me a minute or two?”
Armitage rose from the seat in the orange walk and intercepted Zoe on
her way to the terrace.
“Oh yes. I was only going to wait for Princess Emilia. Is anything the
matter?”
“Oh, nothing much. Only that I want to tell you something, and after
that--well, I suppose I shan’t trouble you again.”
“You mustn’t be so doleful,” said Zoe, in her elder-sisterly way. “If
there is anything wrong, you know that every one of us would do all we
could to help you. It’s nothing about the yacht, is it? She hasn’t
gone on shore?”
“_No!_” he burst out with great vehemence. “What do I care about the
yacht, except to help your brother with? It’s you--and that
Christodoridi chap.”
“Really,” said Zoe, half laughing, half angry, “I shall have to be
rude to that young man in public, if he persists in worrying me as he
does. Maurice thought fit to ask me this morning why I always had him
hanging about, and now you! The general opinion of my taste must be
painfully low.”
“No one imagines you could like a theatrical fool like that,” said
Armitage, somewhat comforted; “but for political reasons, you know.
The Professor--and your sister----”
“Neither the Professor nor Eirene will ever make me accept any one for
political reasons, though they are quite likely to try. I should have
thought you knew me better than to think so.” It did not occur to Zoe
that the kindly reproach in her voice was dangerous, for Armitage had
been a silent adorer for so long that she had learnt to regard him as
that most pleasant and useful possession--a safe friend. But he
interrupted her now, his eager, boyish voice full of feeling.
“You don’t see. It’s just because I know what you are--know how a good
woman loves to sacrifice herself for other people. And that fellow
could never make you happy.”
“No, he certainly could not. But don’t be afraid, he doesn’t want to
try. As far as I can tell, he only haunts me because it makes him feel
uncomfortable to find one woman who is proof against his
fascinations.”
“The conceited brute!” cried Armitage explosively. “Let me deal with
him, Princess. I promise you he won’t fancy himself so much when I’ve
taken him in hand.”
“Probably not. But I am quite able to protect myself, thank you, and I
have Maurice to appeal to.”
“Ah, but it wouldn’t look well for him to come to blows with his
rival,” said Armitage, with unexpected shrewdness. “I don’t signify,
you see. And if you would just give me the right, I could polish him
off before starting, and you would be free from him while I was gone.”
“Starting! Why, where are you going?”
“Oh, that business over there,” jerking his head vaguely in the
direction of Therma. “Will you? You can’t think how much easier it
would make my mind.”
Zoe looked at him quizzically, still unaware of the gravity of the
occasion. “What a boy you are!” she said, as she had often said
before. “You really force me to ask you why you can’t pick a quarrel
with him--not that I want you to,” hastily; “in fact, I forbid
it--without a mandate from me.”
“Because I wouldn’t quarrel with a brute like that--especially about a
lady. But if I could say to him, ‘Princess Zoe is engaged to me, and
if I catch you bothering her any more, you had better look out----’
why, either he takes a back seat, or I kick him for a cad.”
“But I am not engaged to you,” said Zoe involuntarily.
“No, but I want you to be. I have cared for you an awfully long time,
and you have always been frightfully good to me. I don’t bore you as
much as some people, do I?--not as much as he does, at any rate?
Couldn’t you think of it?”
“I really couldn’t.” Zoe was hardly able to regard this very
unconventional proposal as serious, but she managed to speak without a
smile. “I should need something more in a man than that he didn’t bore
me--a good deal more. In fact, I should need so much that I shall
never marry at all.”
“If you would only try me!” he pleaded. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do
to please you.”
“Except what you can’t do, and that is to grow up,” was on the tip of
Zoe’s tongue, but she crushed it down nobly. “I am very sorry,” she
said, with finality, “but it’s quite impossible. I have never given
you any reason----”
“I know you haven’t.” His eagerness to justify her brought the tears
to Zoe’s eyes. “It was all my fault. Only it seemed, you know, as
if---- But I was a fool. You’ll let things be as they were before,
won’t you, when I come back? Then I’ll go off with Wylie, and knock
about a bit----”
“Colonel Wylie? Is he going too? What is it for?”
“Well, we aren’t exactly supposed--I oughtn’t to have----”
“You must tell me now. Where are you going?”
“I am to take Wylie round in the yacht to a place called Skandalo,
from which you can get to Hagiamavra, where these Emathian fellows are
establishing an insurgent stronghold. He goes as your brother’s
representative, to see what can be done, and what chance there is of
success. If there’s none, he might be able to get them to disband
before the Roumis have time to move troops to attack them, but they
seem pretty confident. Panagiotis had a message yesterday evening to
say that they were ready, so we’re off to-night.”
“But is there danger?” gasped Zoe.
“Ought to be none. I wish there was any chance of it.”
“But after his fever. There is sure to be exposure----”
“Oh, for Wylie, you mean. It is still Wylie, then?”
“You have no right to say that----” began Zoe warmly, but her tone
changed. “No, why should I be ashamed to confess it? It is, and it
always will be.”
“Couldn’t be a better man,” said Armitage, with settled depression. “I
always knew that if he was against me I hadn’t the ghost of a chance.
But why I asked was, that I thought I might look after him a little
for you--see that he didn’t do rash things, you know.”
“If you would!” murmured Zoe. “But you will never, never let him guess
why you are doing it?”
“He’ll put me down as a disgusting meddler, I know, but I can stand
it. You can feel he has a deputy guardian angel to look after him, as
you can’t be there yourself.”
“I can’t thank you enough,” said Zoe, giving him her hand; “but I do
thank you. Oh, there is Princess Emilia looking for me on the terrace!
She must have come up the other way.”
She hurried up the steps, leaving Armitage to return mournfully to the
solitude of the marble bench, and try to rearrange his outlook on life
in view of the change the last half-hour had made in it. Presently a
dark shadow paused on the pounded marble of the walk, and looking up,
he found the Dowager Princess contemplating with some surprise the
interloper who had taken possession of her favourite seat. He sprang
up in confusion, and would have departed in haste, with many
apologies, if she had not graciously desired him to sit down again.
The invitation did not place him altogether at his ease, since he was
well aware of the Princess’s diplomatic reputation; but fearing that
she might intend to worm some of his friends’ secrets from him, he
determined to be intensely careful, and if possible to go so far in
Machiavellian astuteness as even to penetrate the designs of his
interlocutor. He had an uncomfortable feeling that she had probably
decided to attack him as the easiest of the party to pump, and he
tried to con over hastily all the points on which caution was
necessary. But there was nothing dangerously political about the
Princess’s first remark, uttered with a sympathetic smile.
“I see you find this a soothing spot, Lord Armitage, as I do. I have
brought many troubles here--many perplexities, too, in the days when I
was my husband’s chief counsellor, and Dardania was threatened by
enemies on every side. Mine has not been a very happy life, but at
least I can look with satisfaction on the Dardania of to-day, the only
contented state in the Balkans. Some of the credit ought to be given
to this quiet seat. I hope it has proved helpful to you also?”
“Well, hardly. Perhaps I haven’t tried it long enough,” said Armitage,
rather at a loss.
“You can see no light on your difficulties? And yet I fancy your
Princess feels more kindly towards you than you think.”
Armitage started involuntarily. “She has confided in you, madame?” he
asked, feeling his way.
“Not directly, but there are ways of judging. Only a person totally
devoid of discrimination could imagine that she found pleasure in the
attentions of Prince Romanos.”
“I know she hates the sight of him!” Armitage thought it safe to
reply.
“And yet it is only too likely that she may be forced to marry him.
Her ambitious sister-in-law----”
“Princess Theophanis can’t make her marry him against her will,
madame.”
“It is not only the Princess; the force of circumstances may compel
her. If her brother attains his object, she must make a marriage that
will strengthen his position. The man may or may not be young
Christodoridi, but it will certainly not be you.”
“No, I suppose not,” he murmured, less crushed than if he had not
already heard the same hard truth from Zoe herself.
“But take courage. I have a foreboding--I do not think that Maurice
Theophanis will ever be Prince of Emathia.”
“Do you mean that there’s a plot, madame?”
“Oh no, not a plot. I merely advise you not to lose hope. The matter
came to my knowledge confidentially, so that I can hardly---- Still,
you are not likely to betray me, so why should I not allow you the
consolation of watching for the event which will ensure the fulfilment
of your hopes?”
“I can’t promise not to make use of any warning you may give me,
madame.” Armitage was more mystified than ever. The Princess laughed.
“If I thought you an honest, quixotic fool, Lord Armitage, should I
tell you? Well, then, your Prince, with the prudence and caution so
characteristic of him, proposes to send his follower, Colonel Wylie,
to discover whether the Emathian insurrection is sufficiently
widespread, well-supported--safe, in fact--to justify him in extending
to it the patronage of his name. Prince Romanos, on the other hand,
presents himself among the insurgents as one of themselves, asking
only to be allowed to fight and die in their ranks. Which is likely to
commend himself most to their favour?”
Armitage’s face was a study while she spoke. Amazement at the
matter-of-course way in which Wylie’s secret mission was mentioned,
followed by indignation at the slur thrown on Maurice, was again
succeeded by surprise at her announcement of the intentions of Prince
Romanos.
“You mean that Christodoridi will disappear from here to throw in his
lot with the insurgents, madame?”
“At very nearly the same hour to-night as your Colonel Wylie, and for
the same reason. They are both considerate enough to wish not to
compromise my son, and therefore both will attend the farewell
reception of the athletes, and then slip away quietly. Colonel Wylie
may be a perfect paladin, but I think you may assure yourself that the
man who goes among his future subjects in person is more likely to be
chosen than the one who sends his servant.”
Armitage assented mechanically, while the Princess went on--
“Therefore, as I say, you may be cheerful. It is not likely to occur
to Prince Theophanis to go to Hagiamavra himself, and you will not put
it into his head. I am rather surprised that his wife has not insisted
upon it already, but perhaps he has kept her in the dark. You must be
most careful not to let her suspect anything to-day, for your face is
eloquent of tremendous news. I can’t advise you too strongly not to
say anything to her about Emathia or Hagiamavra, for she would guess
at once that you were concealing something, and she has force of
character enough to hurry her husband off this evening. But I need not
tell you to be careful.”
She watched his face narrowly. The risk she had taken was
great,--though she had calculated upon her reading of Armitage’s
character,--but she saw she had succeeded. He might accept information
from this intruder, but not advice. She smiled contentedly when he
made the excuse of urgent business to take his departure. Even if he
had not spent some minutes in conversation elaborately designed to
divert her mind from the previous subject, she could have read in his
disturbed expression the thoughts that were chasing each other through
his brain:--“I must put her off the scent, mustn’t let her see that I
believe it. After all, it mayn’t be true. Must see if there’s anything
to confirm it before I tell anybody.”
That evening Wylie was busy in the room which was nominally a sanctum
for Armitage and himself, but served in reality as a council-chamber
when Eirene’s presence was not desired. He was dressed for the Prince
of Dardania’s reception, but his luggage was ready packed, and his
riding clothes were laid out in the bedroom adjoining. Presently
Maurice came in, and his follower looked up from the money-belt he was
filling, and nodded.
“I can’t tell you how glad I am that you are letting me prospect
around a little before throwing yourself into this thing,” he said,
when his calculations were over.
“My wife doesn’t like it at all,” returned Maurice gloomily. “She
thinks I am letting slip a golden opportunity.”
“Let her think!” was the uncourteous reply. “If she hasn’t learnt yet
that it’s safer to prove the statements of Panagiotis and his friends
before acting on them, you and I have.”
“Maurice!” It was Eirene who stood before them, wrapped in a loose
gown, and with her hair only partially dressed. “We must all start for
Hagiamavra to-night. Romanos Christodoridi is going!”
“He can’t. He knows nothing about it,” said Wylie.
“There has been treachery. He has bribed some one. Lord Armitage heard
the first rumour of it this morning, and has spent the day in
discovering the truth. Prince Romanos has horses ready after the
reception, and a fast sailing-boat waiting for him at Pentikosti. Lord
Armitage came to look for you, Maurice, but you were not in your
rooms, and I opened the letter and spoke to him. I have sent him now
to get horses for us.”
“You sent him! Without telling me?”
“Yes.” Eirene’s voice was hard. “Because, if you will not go, I shall
take Constantine and go by myself, with Colonel Wylie in attendance. I
have thought it all out. You have loitered and delayed and preached
prudence too long. I will not have my boy’s rights sacrificed through
your precautions.”
“If you will allow me, sir, I will leave the room to the Princess and
yourself,” said Wylie to Maurice, with marked respect. Eirene turned
upon him.
“You will kindly remain,” she said. “I wish you to be a witness of
what I say to the Prince. You understand me, Maurice? If you will act,
I go as your wife; if you refuse, I go to assert my own claim. In
either case Constantine’s rights are secured. They can only be lost
through cowardice, and I, at least, am not a coward. I have the means
of acting without you, you know.”
“I do know it, unfortunately. You have every advantage over me. Short
of placing you under personal restraint, I can’t hope to influence
you.”
“And that you would never do!” she said triumphantly.
“That I would not do. You are determined not to listen to reason?”
“I will listen to any argument in favour of starting to-night, to none
for putting things off.”
“Very well, then. As you have guessed, I shall not allow my wife to
start on this preposterous expedition by herself, to assert a claim
which stands or falls with mine. We will go together, but the claim
which will be put forward is not yours, but mine. Such rights as the
boy has are derived from me--reinforced, if you like, by yours. You
understand this?”
“I don’t mind what conditions you make, provided that you go,” she
answered, with a laugh that was nervous in spite of her effort to make
it merely light.
“Pardon me, sir. May I remind her Royal Highness of one or two things
she seems to have forgotten?” asked Wylie. A nod gave him permission,
and he went on, “Are you wise, ma’am, in risking the health, perhaps
even the life, of your son in the way you propose? The journey to
Pentikosti is a difficult one, even for men, and at Hagiamavra the
hardships will be considerable. You can take no other woman with you,
and no heavy luggage.”
“You have done your duty to your master by trying to frighten me,” she
returned defiantly; “but I am not frightened.”
“And it does not occur to you that this expedition will irritate the
Powers against his Highness to such an extent as to make him an
impossible candidate in future?”
“Then Prince Romanos will be equally impossible. No, the Prince may go
or not, as he likes, but I go. The horses will be ready at eleven
o’clock, which will give us time to change our clothes after the
reception, if we leave fairly early. I am sorry to keep you waiting
now, Maurice. I shall be ready in ten minutes.”
“I suppose you are compassionating me as a henpecked wretch?” said
Maurice bitterly, as Wylie closed the door after Eirene.
“If I advised you to take your wife by the shoulders and give her a
good shaking, you would set me down as a brute, and I don’t know that
it would do much good,” said Wylie.
“Not a bit. I always knew something of this kind was bound to happen.
You see, there’s no question about my having robbed her of her rights,
and I am bound to back her up in recovering them. I have never been
able to satisfy her in that way yet, and of course she thinks me
slack.”
“Why not offer to go yourself if she and the child will stay quietly
here?”
“Quietly? What would she be doing here--can you say? You know the way
in which that money was left----”
“I know; it’s rough on you every way. Makes a man glad to have escaped
matrimony so far,” said Wylie. “But if I had to deal with that young
woman, she would soon learn to behave herself!” was his
self-sufficient mental remark, for which a speedy Nemesis was already
lying in wait for him.
The night was very dark when, armed with a lantern, he awaited his
fellow-travellers at a side door. In spite of the care taken not to
compromise him, the Prince of Dardania was fully aware that something
was going on, and had issued orders to his officials not to be too
inquisitive with respect to any horsemen leaving the city. But it was
not considered advisable to ride through the principal streets, and
run the risk of encountering belated guests coming from the Palace, so
that every possible advantage was to be taken of lanes and byways.
Armitage, laden with saddle-bags and hold-alls till he could scarcely
walk, came staggering through the doorway, whispering that the rest
were close at hand; and presently Maurice appeared, with little
Constantine, wrapped up like an infant mummy, in his arms, and two
women close upon his heels. Wylie stepped forward with natural
indignation.
“You can’t go,” he said, stopping the taller of the two. “The Princess
knows she is not to take a maid.”
“She is not taking me, but I am going,” said Zoe’s voice. Wylie still
barred the path.
“No, you’re not. There’s no horse for you.”
Zoe laughed. “You mustn’t rate our intelligence quite so low. Eirene
knew I should come, and asked Lord Armitage to get a horse for me. I
think myself you are making a mistake in not letting us take my good
Linton, who has gone through all sorts of horrors with me without
turning a hair, but she will be ready to join us with supplies
whenever I wire to her.”
“But you can’t go. It’s quite impossible. It’s--it’s useless. The
Princess goes to assert her rights, and she has her husband to protect
her, but you have no one to look after you.” Wylie was growing
desperate.
“I am very much obliged to you,” said Zoe, with meaning in her voice.
“Still, I can assure you that if both you and Lord Armitage turn your
backs on me, I am quite capable of looking after myself.”
“Oh, look here, Princess,” he said, in a tone that startled Zoe, so
long was it since she had heard it, “don’t bring the whole thing to
smash, I beg of you. You stay behind, like a--like a sensible woman,
and persuade your sister to stay too. You forget that your brother and
I know something already about dragging ladies through the wilds of
Emathia, and we don’t want to try it again. And to take women and
children when there’s a prospect of fighting Roumis--it’s unthinkable,
simply sickening folly. Now you will go back?”
His earnestness was quite pathetic, but Zoe hardened her heart. “If
you ask me as a friend, I will,” she said.
Wylie recollected himself. “No, I won’t--ma’am,” he said angrily.
“Then I won’t go back,” said Zoe.