Adventure, December 1914 — page 214: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

212 brave, true personality. Oh, it hurt me to think that her dream was ended. At the time I was not sure, but now I know that I would have helped her carry out her plan as far as I conscientiously could, had it been possible. If it made her happy that would have been enough. I would have done anything, gone to any lengths, sacrificed myself in any way, to gain that end. SO I pondered as I rode down Czar- Liberator Street toward the Kurtsky villa, joyful, withal, that my mes- sage would absolve me from any such Spar- tan obligations. For the defeat of Bulgaria meant undeniably the failure of Ferdinand’s far-fetched plan of a Balkan Empire, and conversely the collapse of the contemplat- ed marriage of Masoya to the prince. [ knew she would never consént to it now that there was nothing material to be gained for the people she always looked upon as her people, but I had the decency to veil my feelings at sight of the tense looks on the faces of Masoya and old Kurtsky who met me at the door. “Well?” said the minister. “It’s over,” I answered. He walked to a window and stood with his back toward me for several moments. Masoya fronted me, eyes wide opened, lips parted, as if she had not gathered the full import of the words. “Surely, you suspected—from the firing,” I said gently. ‘“‘You—you mean—there is—no hope?”’ she faltered. ‘‘None,”’ I said—and there was no exul- tation in my voice. ‘It has been recom- mended his Majesty to appeal to the Powers to intervene. We are beaten—hopelessly beaten. If there was more ammunition— even if there was a cause to inspirit the men—it might be different. As it is—there is no hope.” Her face went gray all of a sudden, and she swayed so that I feared she might fall. IT caught her and held her in my arms. ‘“‘Sweetheart!’’ I muttered. ‘‘Sweetheart, I’d give anything if it could be otherwise.”’ And I swear at the minute I meant it, every word of it. ; “Oh, no, no!” she sobbed, burying her face in my shoulder. ‘I’m glad, so glad. More glad than Ican say. I knew it wasn’t right all along. If we had won I should have felt the blood of those poor slaughtered Adventure boys choking me all the rest of my life. But I wouldn’t admit it, though I knew it was wrong. I wouldn’t admit it—and now God has saved me!” The minister gave up staring out of the window at this point. “I fancy you two are the only people who will make anything out of this mess,” he commented dryly over his shoulder. ‘Well, I’m glad something has been saved from the wreck. Hullo!’ An automobile driven at reckless speed swung into the driveway and brought up with a jerk under the porte-cochére. From it leaped a woman who tore open the hall door and burst in upon us without the formal- ity of ringing. She was Héléne von Anhalt. She closed the door carefully and stood with her back against it, breathing heavily. “I don’t suppose I’m a welcome guest here,’’ said the Countess von Anhalt calmly, addressing herself strictly to me. ‘And I’m not a bearer of good news. SoI thought I wouldn’t give you a chance to shut me out, Mr. Blair. Ferdinand believes that you are the sole cause of what has hap- pened, and at this moment he is writing out an order for your arrest.”’ CHAPTER XXII OVER THE HILLS TO GIPSY LAND Mee MINISTER and I stood gaping at her like yokels. It was Masoya who met the situation. “Are you sure of your information, Countess?”’ she asked. “IT have just come from the Palace,” replied the Anhalt. “TI tell you you have no time to spare—if you wish to escape. And that applies to you, too, Guspojita Vavaroff.”’ ‘‘What do you mean?” I exclaimed. Héléne von Anhalt smiled slowly as she answered. “Tt seems that Gortcheff hates the Guspo- jita Vavaroff as much as he does you,”’ she said. ‘“‘At any rate, he has poisoned the Czar’s mind against you both. God knows what he has said. I don’t. But it suffices that he has made his Majesty believe that the two of you have deliberately plotted this disgrace which has overtaken him.” The minister had not spoken a word up to now, but he had kept his head better than any of us. MICLOOOK C@