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CHAPTER VIII THE BEATING OF DEATH’S WINGS
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 We had walked a hundred yards or more, and turned the corner of the street before either of us spoke1. Then I said, “A narrow escape, my friend.”
“Are you sure?” he asked, scarcely above his breath, and, as he turned towards me, his face looked ghastly under the lamp.
I told him exactly what I had seen.
“I’m a marked man,” was all his comment as I finished my story, and he spoke the words in a tone of despairing conviction. “A marked man, Tyrrell, my good friend,” he continued; “how can I thank you for having saved my life? Your presence of mind was wonderful, though I fear your services can only prolong my agony. I’m doomed2, lost.”
“Nonsense, Lindheim! For Heaven’s sake don’t let your nerves go now when you want them most.”
He shook his head. “Nerves are of no avail against the powers here. You don’t know—be thankful you don’t. Furello is merely an instrument: one of many.”
“Anyhow,” I said cheerily, “I am going to stand by you and get you out of this business if it is as bad as you say. An Englishman doesn’t let cowardly murder go on before his eyes if he can help it.”
“It is splendidly kind of you, Tyrrell; but you had better leave me to my fate. If you interfere3 you will only share it.”
[Pg 47]
I laughed. “Not I.”
“You don’t know Rallenstein.”
“Don’t I?”
He gave an apprehensive4 glance behind. “It is hardly worth while,” he said, with an attempt at a laugh, “but we may as well be careful, as we are probably being watched.”
“Of course, you are supposed to be ill; the poison is taking its effect,” I returned. “You had better stagger and lean on me for the rest of the way.”
It did not need much of an effort to make him look pretty ill. He went through some appropriate pantomime, dismal5 enough when one comes to think of it, and I pretended to help him along till we came to his house. As we turned in I certainly seemed to see the indistinct figure of a man some distance behind on the other side of the deserted6 street. Von Lindheim begged me to stay, and, indeed, I was unwilling7 to leave him, having seen enough on both that and the previous nights to realize that he might stand in considerable danger, although, had it not been for the evidence of my own eyes, I should probably have set down his own fears as rather childish.
In the house we found Szalay waiting, pacing the room in a perturbed8 state of mind.
“Well?” he inquired anxiously.
Von Lindheim flung down his hat. “We had better both make our wills, Szalay,” he cried in desperation.
Szalay’s face turned greenish grey. “You can’t settle it, then?” he asked nervously9.
“I have nearly settled myself in trying to,” the other returned grimly. “I went to the Baroness’s to give Furello a hint, with the result that, but for our friend here, I should have been carried home on four shoulders.”
“Heaven! what do you mean?” Szalay’s eyes [Pg 48]were almost starting from his head as he gasped10 out the question.
Von Lindheim related the story of his escape.
“My own idea is,” he said in conclusion, “that the whole business, your challenge, and my invitation, are simply methods to get rid of us both.”
Then there was silence, the silence of almost hopeless fear.
“What are we to do?” Szalay asked unsteadily.
Von Lindheim gave a shrug11. Then, to relieve the tension, I spoke.
“Is it asking too much, as I mean to stand by you fellows, that you should tell me the reason of all this; what you saw last night?”
“Better not ask, my dear Tyrrell; the knowledge is fatal—too fatal, already. D’Urban is missing too,” he went on, in a fresh access of despair. “Poor D’Urban, dead by now, probably. And Orsova, you know.”
“I saw his death,” I remarked.
“In the papers to-night, yes.”
“No,” I returned quietly; “I was present at his death last night.”
“You?” they both gasped out.
“Assuredly. In the palace.”
“Suicide? No?”
“Well, it was and it wasn’t. Tell me what you saw, and you shall hear all about it.”
Von Lindheim walked to the mantel and leaned against it. “We are doomed, Szalay. We are both dead men.”
His colleague had turned away to hide, perhaps, the fear that was in his face.
“What did you fellows see?” I repeated.
“Enough,” Von Lindheim answered, with a short laugh of desperation, “to make our lives forfeit12. The devil must have led us to investigate that light.”
[Pg 49]
“What did you see?”
“A sight for which we have now to pay,” Szalay broke in bitterly.
“The little chapel13 was just dimly lighted by a pair of candles,” Von Lindheim proceeded. “Through a light-coloured pane14 in the low window we could see a priest in vestments standing15 before what had once been the altar. It was curious. He seemed the only person in the chapel. Soon he looked up, as though at the entrance of some one, and opened the book in his hand. Three people, a man and two ladies, came quickly up the chapel and placed themselves before him at the altar. You may guess who two of them were. Von Orsova and the Princess Casilde. They had come to be married.”
“Married! That accounts for everything.”
“More than accounts for it,” my friend continued grimly. “Well, when we realized what the scene meant, the spirit of caution took possession of us; we were chance spectators of what was practically an act of high treason.”
“Accessories in effect,” Szalay put in.
“There were two courses open to us,” Von Lindheim went on. “To interrupt the ceremony, or to steal away and keep our own counsel. Our evil genius prompted us all three to choose the latter.”
“The former was too dangerous,” Szalay said. “We knew too much; even in that case we should have been marked men.”
“Anyhow,” the other proceeded, “we crept away from the window and hurried back through the wood to the palace.”
“It was a mistake,” Szalay said. “We should have run the other way.”
“A fatal mistake. For we came plump upon two men hastening towards the chapel. One ran on, the other halted and scrutinized16 us, then followed [Pg 50]his companion. The Jaguar17, and his striking paw, Furello.”
“The two I saw,” was my remark.
“Yes. Now you see the man, the fiend, and his methods,” Von Lindheim said. “He did not strike at once, but watched the marriage to an end, that he might strike more surely and quietly. Now we have the whole story.”
“So far. It is not ended,” Szalay said gloomily.
“I fear it is I who have unwittingly betrayed you,” I said. “Furello could but have guessed before he cross-questioned me.”
“A guess is enough for Rallenstein. He makes sure.”
“Anyhow, I feel guilty,” I said, “and am determined18 to stand by you both if you will let me.”
“Better start for England to-night,” Von Lindheim replied gloomily, “before you share our fate.”
I laughed. “Even your Chancellor19 will think twice before he murders a British subject.”
“Murders? No. My dear Tyrrell, your death would be of the most deplorably accidental description. Rallenstein is above all things an artist.”
“Well, I’m not going to desert you fellows, so please don’t suggest it. Now you shall know what I saw last night.”
Then I told them of the chance which had made me a witness of Von Orsova’s death. Needless to say the recital20 did not tend to allay21 their fears.
“The Rittmeister has paid!” Szalay exclaimed, with a lugubrious22 jerk of the head.
“But you,” I said, “what crime can there be in what you saw in that glance through the window? If that is motive23 enough for getting rid of you——”
“Motive enough,” Von Lindheim returned. “If you knew what we could tell you, you would not be surprised. In this country a whisper, a shrug, a [Pg 51]laugh are, any one of them, enough to bring a man to his death. And the innocent have often to suffer for the guilty—to make sure.”
“It is clear enough,” Szalay added, pacing the room. “This affaire Orsova is likely to upset the Chancellor’s plans. If it were to become a scandal, the alliance he has set his heart and the King’s upon would never come to anything.”
Some one was heard below, and Von Lindheim ran to the door.
“It is only Pabst,” he said, coming back with a relieved face. “I had forgotten he was out.”
There was a knock at the door and Pabst came in. He was Von Lindheim’s housekeeper24 and factotum25, a respectable elderly man. He looked perturbed.
“Pardon, meine Herren,” he said. “I did not know Herr Szalay was here. He has doubtless brought you the bad news.”
The two colleagues looked at each other in renewed fear. “What bad news?” Von Lindheim asked.
“You mean the death of the Herr Rittmeister von Orsova,” I suggested.
“Pardon, mein Herr,” Pabst answered, with a grave shake of the head, “it is nearer than that. Herr D’Urban——”
“Ah!” The terror in both men made them cry out simultaneously26. But the good Pabst probably read nothing in their faces beyond ignorance, and concern for the fate of a colleague.
“He is most unhappily drowned,” he said.
“Drowned?”
“They found his body in the river this evening near the Powder Mills. They say his mother, poor lady, is——”
“But D’Urban was a swimmer,” Szalay cried.
“He could swim well,” Von Lindheim said gloomily. “But of what avail was that——”
[Pg 52]
“True, mein Herr,” Pabst chimed in. “He has an ugly blow on his head. They say he must have been carried over the Tollert Fall, struck against a rock or pile, and so been stunned27.”
“His turn has come first,” Von Lindheim observed grimly when the old servant had left the room. He seemed to be growing reckless now from the very hopelessness of his situation. “What are we to do?” he laughed.
“One thing is settled,” I said. “You and Herr Szalay are going to face this danger, if it exists, and will not give up your lives without a struggle. Surely, Lindheim, there is some law, some authority to which you can appeal for protection.”
He shook his head. “None.”
“But in these days of civilization men are not butchered in cold blood without an appeal to law and justice.”
“Civilization,” he answered, “is a very pretty word for occasions. We are proud of it, in theory, but it is never allowed to stand in the way of political expediency28. The head of all law and authority in this country is the Chancellor; the King himself is but his creature, and Rallenstein’s methods are, when necessary, quite medi?val.”
“But men in your position——”
“Bah! He would have the King poisoned to-morrow if it suited his purpose. We have no party government here, worse luck!”
“Then there is nothing to do but to find a way of escape.”
“Escape? Outwit the Jaguar!” He laughed at the idea.
“We’ll try, anyhow. Let us view the situation calmly. You are supposed to have drunk that dose of Furello’s, and are dying. We have the start of them there.”
[Pg 53]
He made an impatient gesture. “It comes to the same in the end; the agony is only prolonged. Better get it over.”
“Nonsense. You have a chance, and a good one. I tell you both you must not be so mad and wicked as to throw it away.”
Thus appealed to, and perhaps catching29 hope from my confident manner, they made an effort to look more cheerfully at the business.
“There may be half a chance,” Von Lindheim said.
“There will be none,” I said, “if you give up. We have three heads here, and we know our danger. You mean to fight for your life, eh, Herr Szalay?”
Szalay tried to smile, but could only achieve a ghastly grimace30. “I am not yet tired of my life, and am ready to make an effort.”
“Good!” I returned. “Now for our plans. We must hoodwink this autocratic butcher. Send for a doctor; the most stupid in the place, for choice. Who answers to that description?”
Von Lindheim thought a moment. “Doctor Rothmer, I should think, eh, Szalay? The man who killed the Reichsrath Lorenz by treating him for indigestion when he had peritonitis.”
“A pompous31 idiot, eh? Just the man. Send for him at once, and turn into bed. Recollect32 you are poisoned; but don’t tell the doctor that. All you know is that you have been supping abroad and are horribly ill.”
I rang, and told Pabst to send for the doctor.
“And I? What am I to do?” Szalay inquired with almost ludicrous concern. “I am not poisoned.”
“No. You have simply got to keep quiet and not be seen. Your second is taken suddenly ill and cannot act for you. I may be able to avert33 the meeting; at any rate to delay it. Anyhow, we must [Pg 54]work to throw our enemies off their guard. That’s the vague plan I have at present.”
Szalay brightened. My taking things so coolly seemed to give him confidence. The whole business was an eye-opener certainly; and after what I had seen there was no room for doubt that the Chancellor and his people meant business. However, funk and flurry would do no good. I, being somewhat involved in the affair, was prepared to see it through, and take my chance of trying any of the pleasant little ways the authorities seemed to have for disposing of awkward onlookers34. Whether I had let these men in for the trouble or not I was resolved to get them out, and I thought I could do it.

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1 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
2 doomed EuuzC1     
命定的
参考例句:
  • The court doomed the accused to a long term of imprisonment. 法庭判处被告长期监禁。
  • A country ruled by an iron hand is doomed to suffer. 被铁腕人物统治的国家定会遭受不幸的。
3 interfere b5lx0     
v.(in)干涉,干预;(with)妨碍,打扰
参考例句:
  • If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话,可能弊多利少。
  • When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件,棘手的事情就来了。
4 apprehensive WNkyw     
adj.担心的,恐惧的,善于领会的
参考例句:
  • She was deeply apprehensive about her future.她对未来感到非常担心。
  • He was rather apprehensive of failure.他相当害怕失败。
5 dismal wtwxa     
adj.阴沉的,凄凉的,令人忧郁的,差劲的
参考例句:
  • That is a rather dismal melody.那是一支相当忧郁的歌曲。
  • My prospects of returning to a suitable job are dismal.我重新找到一个合适的工作岗位的希望很渺茫。
6 deserted GukzoL     
adj.荒芜的,荒废的,无人的,被遗弃的
参考例句:
  • The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
  • The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。
7 unwilling CjpwB     
adj.不情愿的
参考例句:
  • The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
  • His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。
8 perturbed 7lnzsL     
adj.烦燥不安的v.使(某人)烦恼,不安( perturb的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • I am deeply perturbed by the alarming way the situation developing. 我对形势令人忧虑的发展深感不安。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Mother was much perturbed by my illness. 母亲为我的病甚感烦恼不安。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
9 nervously tn6zFp     
adv.神情激动地,不安地
参考例句:
  • He bit his lip nervously,trying not to cry.他紧张地咬着唇,努力忍着不哭出来。
  • He paced nervously up and down on the platform.他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。
10 gasped e6af294d8a7477229d6749fa9e8f5b80     
v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 );喘息;倒抽气;很想要
参考例句:
  • She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
  • People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
11 shrug Ry3w5     
v.耸肩(表示怀疑、冷漠、不知等)
参考例句:
  • With a shrug,he went out of the room.他耸一下肩,走出了房间。
  • I admire the way she is able to shrug off unfair criticism.我很佩服她能对错误的批评意见不予理会。
12 forfeit YzCyA     
vt.丧失;n.罚金,罚款,没收物
参考例句:
  • If you continue to tell lies,you will forfeit the good opinion of everyone.你如果继续撒谎,就会失掉大家对你的好感。
  • Please pay for the forfeit before you borrow book.在你借书之前请先付清罚款。
13 chapel UXNzg     
n.小教堂,殡仪馆
参考例句:
  • The nimble hero,skipped into a chapel that stood near.敏捷的英雄跳进近旁的一座小教堂里。
  • She was on the peak that Sunday afternoon when she played in chapel.那个星期天的下午,她在小教堂的演出,可以说是登峰造极。
14 pane OKKxJ     
n.窗格玻璃,长方块
参考例句:
  • He broke this pane of glass.他打破了这块窗玻璃。
  • Their breath bloomed the frosty pane.他们呼出的水气,在冰冷的窗玻璃上形成一层雾。
15 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
16 scrutinized e48e75426c20d6f08263b761b7a473a8     
v.仔细检查,详审( scrutinize的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • The jeweler scrutinized the diamond for flaws. 宝石商人仔细察看钻石有无瑕庇 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • Together we scrutinized the twelve lemon cakes from the delicatessen shop. 我们一起把甜食店里买来的十二块柠檬蛋糕细细打量了一番。 来自英汉文学 - 盖茨比
17 jaguar JaPz8     
n.美洲虎
参考例句:
  • He was green with envy when he saw my new Jaguar car.看见我那辆美洲虎牌新车,他非常妒忌。
  • Should you meet a jaguar in the jungle,just turn slowly,walk away.But slowly,never look back.你在丛林中若碰上美洲虎,就慢慢转身走开,可一定要慢,切莫回头看。
18 determined duszmP     
adj.坚定的;有决心的
参考例句:
  • I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
  • He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。
19 chancellor aUAyA     
n.(英)大臣;法官;(德、奥)总理;大学校长
参考例句:
  • They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
  • He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。
20 recital kAjzI     
n.朗诵,独奏会,独唱会
参考例句:
  • She is going to give a piano recital.她即将举行钢琴独奏会。
  • I had their total attention during the thirty-five minutes that my recital took.在我叙述的35分钟内,他们完全被我吸引了。
21 allay zxIzJ     
v.消除,减轻(恐惧、怀疑等)
参考例句:
  • The police tried to allay her fears but failed.警察力图减轻她的恐惧,但是没有收到什么效果。
  • They are trying to allay public fears about the spread of the disease.他们正竭力减轻公众对这种疾病传播的恐惧。
22 lugubrious IAmxn     
adj.悲哀的,忧郁的
参考例句:
  • That long,lugubrious howl rose on the night air again!夜空中又传来了那又长又凄凉的狗叫声。
  • After the earthquake,the city is full of lugubrious faces.地震之后,这个城市满是悲哀的面孔。
23 motive GFzxz     
n.动机,目的;adv.发动的,运动的
参考例句:
  • The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
  • He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。
24 housekeeper 6q2zxl     
n.管理家务的主妇,女管家
参考例句:
  • A spotless stove told us that his mother is a diligent housekeeper.炉子清洁无瑕就表明他母亲是个勤劳的主妇。
  • She is an economical housekeeper and feeds her family cheaply.她节约持家,一家人吃得很省。
25 factotum tlWxb     
n.杂役;听差
参考例句:
  • We need a factotum to take care of the workshop.我们需要一个杂役来负责车间的事情。
  • I was employed as housekeeper,nanny,and general factotum.我是管家、保姆和总勤杂工。
26 simultaneously 4iBz1o     
adv.同时发生地,同时进行地
参考例句:
  • The radar beam can track a number of targets almost simultaneously.雷达波几乎可以同时追着多个目标。
  • The Windows allow a computer user to execute multiple programs simultaneously.Windows允许计算机用户同时运行多个程序。
27 stunned 735ec6d53723be15b1737edd89183ec2     
adj. 震惊的,惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词
参考例句:
  • The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
  • The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。
28 expediency XhLzi     
n.适宜;方便;合算;利己
参考例句:
  • The government is torn between principle and expediency. 政府在原则与权宜之间难于抉择。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • It was difficult to strike the right balance between justice and expediency. 在公正与私利之间很难两全。 来自辞典例句
29 catching cwVztY     
adj.易传染的,有魅力的,迷人的,接住
参考例句:
  • There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。
  • Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。
30 grimace XQVza     
v.做鬼脸,面部歪扭
参考例句:
  • The boy stole a look at his father with grimace.那男孩扮着鬼脸偷看了他父亲一眼。
  • Thomas made a grimace after he had tasted the wine.托马斯尝了那葡萄酒后做了个鬼脸。
31 pompous 416zv     
adj.傲慢的,自大的;夸大的;豪华的
参考例句:
  • He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities.他有点自大,自视甚高。
  • He is a good man underneath his pompous appearance. 他的外表虽傲慢,其实是个好人。
32 recollect eUOxl     
v.回忆,想起,记起,忆起,记得
参考例句:
  • He tried to recollect things and drown himself in them.他极力回想过去的事情而沉浸于回忆之中。
  • She could not recollect being there.她回想不起曾经到过那儿。
33 avert 7u4zj     
v.防止,避免;转移(目光、注意力等)
参考例句:
  • He managed to avert suspicion.他设法避嫌。
  • I would do what I could to avert it.我会尽力去避免发生这种情况。
34 onlookers 9475a32ff7f3c5da0694cff2738f9381     
n.旁观者,观看者( onlooker的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • A crowd of onlookers gathered at the scene of the crash. 在撞车地点聚集了一大群围观者。
  • The onlookers stood at a respectful distance. 旁观者站在一定的距离之外,以示尊敬。


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