“So that’s that,” said Anthony, finishing off his glass and replacing it on the table. “What boat were you going on?”
“Granarth Castle.”
“Passage booked in your name, I suppose, so I’d better travel as James McGrath. We’ve outgrown2 the passport business, haven’t we?”
“No odds3 either way. You and I are totally unlike, but we’d probably have the same description on one of those blinking things. Height 6 feet, hair brown, eyes blue, nose, ordinary, chin ordinary——”
“Not so much of this ‘ordinary’ stunt4. Let me tell you that Castle’s selected me out of several applicants5 solely6 on account of my pleasing appearance and nice manners.”
Jimmy grinned.
“I noticed your manners this morning.”
“The devil you did.”
Anthony rose and paced up and down the room. His brow was slightly wrinkled, and it was some minutes before he spoke7.
“Jimmy,” he said at last. “Stylptitch died in Paris. What’s the point of sending a manuscript from Paris to London via Africa?”
Jimmy shook his head helplessly.
“I don’t know.”
“Why not do it up in a nice little parcel and send it by post?”
“Sounds a damn sight more sensible, I agree.”
[Pg 12]
“Of course,” continued Anthony, “I know that Kings and Queens and Government officials are prevented by etiquette8 from doing anything in a simple, straightforward9 fashion. Hence King’s Messengers and all that. In medieval days you gave a fellow a signet ring as a sort of Open Sesame. ‘The King’s Ring! Pass, my Lord!’ And usually it was the other fellow who had stolen it. I always wonder why some bright lad never hit on the expedient10 of copying the ring—making a dozen or so, and selling them at a hundred ducats apiece. They seem to have had no initiative in the Middle Ages.”
Jimmy yawned.
“My remarks on the Middle Ages don’t seem to amuse you. Let us get back to Count Stylptitch. From France to England via Africa seems a bit thick even for a diplomatic personage. If he merely wanted to ensure that you should get a thousand pounds he could have left it you in his will. Thank God neither you nor I are too proud to accept a legacy12! Stylptitch must have been balmy.”
“You’d think so, wouldn’t you?”
Anthony frowned and continued his pacing.
“Have you read the thing at all?” he asked suddenly.
“Read what?”
“The manuscript.”
“Good Lord, no. What do you think I want to read a thing of that kind for?”
Anthony smiled.
“I just wondered, that’s all. You know a lot of trouble has been caused by Memoirs13. Indiscreet revelations, that sort of thing. People who have been closed as an oyster15 all their lives seem positively16 to relish17 causing trouble when they themselves shall be comfortably dead. It gives them a kind of malicious18 glee. Jimmy, what sort of a man was Count Stylptitch? You met him and talked to him, and you’re a pretty good judge of raw human nature. Could you imagine him being a vindictive19 old devil?”
Jimmy shook his head.
“It’s difficult to tell. You see, that first night he was[Pg 13] distinctly canned, and the next day he was just a high-toned old boy with the most beautiful manners overwhelming me with compliments till I didn’t know where to look.”
“And he didn’t say anything interesting when he was drunk?”
Jimmy cast his mind back, wrinkling his brows as he did so.
“He said he knew where the Koh-i-noor was,” he volunteered doubtfully.
“Oh, well,” said Anthony, “we all know that. They keep it in the Tower, don’t they? Behind thick plate glass and iron bars, with a lot of gentlemen in fancy dress standing20 round to see you don’t pinch anything.”
“That’s right,” agreed Jimmy.
“Did Stylptitch say anything else of the same kind? That he knew which city the Wallace Collection was in, for instance?”
Jimmy shook his head.
“H’m!” said Anthony.
He lit another cigarette, and once more began pacing up and down the room.
“You never read the papers, I suppose, you heathen?” he threw out presently.
“Not very often,” said McGrath simply. “They’re not about anything that interests me as a rule.”
“Thank Heaven I’m more civilized21. There have been several mentions of Herzoslovakia lately. Hints at a Royalist restoration.”
“Nicholas IV didn’t leave a son,” said Jimmy. “But I don’t suppose for a minute that the Obolovitch dynasty is extinct. There are probably shoals of young ’uns knocking about, cousins and second cousins and third cousins once removed.”
“So that there wouldn’t be any difficulty in finding a King?”
“Not in the least, I should say,” replied Jimmy. “You know, I don’t wonder at their getting tired of Republican[Pg 14] institutions. A full-blooded, virile22 people like that must find it awfully23 tame to pot at Presidents after being used to Kings. And talking of Kings, that reminds me of something else old Stylptitch let out that night. He said he knew the gang that was after him. They were King Victor’s people, he said.”
“What?” Anthony wheeled round suddenly.
A slow grin widened on McGrath’s face.
He went over to the window and stood there looking out.
“No,” said Anthony slowly. “He isn’t that kind of a King.”
“What is he, then?”
There was a pause, and then Anthony spoke.
“He’s a crook26, Jimmy. The most notorious jewel thief in the world. A fantastic, daring fellow, not to be daunted27 by anything. King Victor was the nickname he was known by in Paris. Paris was the headquarters of his gang. They caught him there and put him away for seven years on a minor28 charge. They couldn’t prove the more important things against him. He’ll be out soon—or he may be out already.”
“Do you think Count Stylptitch had anything to do with putting him away? Was that why the gang went for him? Out of revenge?”
“I don’t know,” said Anthony. “It doesn’t seem likely on the face of it. King Victor never stole the Crown jewels of Herzoslovakia as far as I’ve heard. But the whole thing seems rather suggestive, doesn’t it? The death of Stylptitch, the Memoirs, and the rumours30 in the papers—all vague but interesting. And there’s a further rumour29 to the effect that they’ve found oil in Herzoslovakia. I’ve a[Pg 15] feeling in my bones, James, that people are getting ready to be interested in that unimportant little country.”
“What sort of people?”
“Financiers in City offices.”
“What are you driving at with all this?”
“Trying to make an easy job difficult, that’s all.”
“You can’t pretend there’s going to be any difficulty in handing over a simple manuscript at a publisher’s office?”
“No,” said Anthony regretfully. “I don’t suppose there’ll be anything difficult about that. But shall I tell you, James, where I propose to go with my £250?”
“South America?”
“No, my lad, Herzoslovakia. I shall stand in with the Republic, I think. Very probably I shall end up as President.”
“Why not announce yourself as the principal Obolovitch and be a King whilst you’re about it?”
“No, Jimmy. Kings are for life. Presidents only take on the job for four years or so. It would quite amuse me to govern a kingdom like Herzoslovakia for four years.”
“The average for Kings is even less, I should say,” interpolated Jimmy.
“It will probably be a serious temptation to me to embezzle31 your share of the thousand pounds. You won’t want it, you know, when you get back weighed down with nuggets. I’ll invest it for you in Herzoslovakian oil shares. You know, James, the more I think of it, the more pleased I am with this idea of yours. I should never have thought of Herzoslovakia if you hadn’t mentioned it. I shall spend one day in London, collecting the booty, and then away by the Balkan express!”
“You won’t get off quite as fast as that. I didn’t mention it before, but I’ve got another little commission for you.”
“I knew all along that you were keeping something dark. This is where the catch comes in.”
[Pg 16]
“Not a bit. It’s just something that’s got to be done to help a lady.”
“Once and for all, James, I refuse to be mixed up in your beastly love affairs.”
“It’s not a love affair. I’ve never seen the woman. I’ll tell you the whole story.”
“If I’ve got to listen to more of your long, rambling33 stories, I shall have to have another drink.”
His host complied hospitably34 with this demand, then began the tale.
“It was when I was up in Uganda. There was a Dago there whose life I had saved——”
“If I were you, Jimmy, I should write a short book entitled ‘Lives I have Saved.’ This is the second I’ve heard of this evening.”
“Oh, well, I didn’t really do anything this time. Just pulled the Dago out of the river. Like all Dagos, he couldn’t swim.”
“Wait a minute, has this story anything to do with the other business?”
“Nothing whatever, though, oddly enough, now I remember it, the man was a Herzoslovakian. We always called him Dutch Pedro though.”
Anthony nodded indifferently.
“Any name’s good enough for a Dago,” he remarked. “Get on with the good work, James.”
“Well, the fellow was sort of grateful about it. Hung around like a dog. About six months later he died of fever. I was with him. Last thing, just as he was pegging35 out, he beckoned36 me and whispered some excited jargon37 about a secret—a gold mine, I thought he said. Shoved an oilskin packet into my hand which he’d always worn next his skin. Well, I didn’t think much of it at the time. It wasn’t until a week afterwards that I opened the packet. Then I was curious, I must confess. I shouldn’t have thought that Dutch Pedro would have had the sense to know a gold mine when he saw it—but there’s no accounting38 for luck——”
[Pg 17]
“I was never so disgusted in my life. Gold mine, indeed! I daresay it may have been a gold mine to him, the dirty dog. Do you know what it was? A woman’s letters—yes, a woman’s letters, and an Englishwoman at that. The skunk39 had been blackmailing40 her—and he had the impudence41 to pass on his dirty bag of tricks to me.”
“I like to see your righteous heat, James, but let me point out to you that Dagos will be Dagos. He meant well. You had saved his life, he bequeathed to you a profitable source of raising money—your high-minded British ideals did not enter his horizon.”
“Well, what the hell was I to do with the things? Burn ’em, that’s what I thought at first. And then it occurred to me that there would be that poor dame42, not knowing they’d be destroyed, and always living in a quake and a dread43 lest that Dago should turn up again one day.”
“You’ve more imagination than I gave you credit for, Jimmy,” observed Anthony, lighting44 a cigarette. “I admit that the case presented more difficulties than were at first apparent. What about just sending them to her by post?”
“Like all women, she’d put no date and no address on most of the letters. There was a kind of address on one—just one word. Chimneys.”
Anthony paused in the act of blowing out his match, and he dropped it with a quick jerk of the wrist as it burned his finger.
“Chimneys?” he said. “That’s rather extraordinary.”
“Why, do you know it?”
“It’s one of the stately homes of England, my dear James. A place where Kings and Queens go for weekends, and diplomatists forgather and diplome.”
“That’s one of the reasons why I’m so glad that you’re going to England instead of me. You know all these things,” said Jimmy simply. “A josser like myself from the backwoods of Canada would be making all sorts of[Pg 18] bloomers. But some one like you who’s been to Eton and Harrow——”
“Only one of them,” said Anthony modestly.
“Will be able to carry it through. Why didn’t I send them to her, you say? Well, it seemed to me dangerous. From what I could make out, she seemed to have a jealous husband. Suppose he opened the letter by mistake. Where would the poor dame be then? Or she might be dead—the letters looked as though they’d been written some time. As I figured it out, the only thing was for some one to take them to England and put them into her own hands.”
Anthony threw away his cigarette, and coming across to his friend clapped him affectionately on the back.
“You’re a real knight-errant, Jimmy,” he said. “And the backwoods of Canada should be proud of you. I shan’t do the job half as prettily45 as you would.”
“You’ll take it on then?”
“Of course.”
McGrath rose, and going across to a drawer took out a bundle of letters and threw them on the table.
“Here you are. You’d better have a look at them.”
“Is it necessary? On the whole, I’d rather not.”
“Well, from what you say about this Chimneys place, she may have been staying there only. We’d better look through the letters and see if there’s any clue as to where she really hangs out.”
“I suppose you’re right.”
They went through the letters carefully, but without finding what they had hoped to find. Anthony gathered them up again thoughtfully.
“Poor little devil,” he remarked. “She was scared stiff.”
Jimmy nodded.
“Do you think you’ll be able to find her all right?” he asked anxiously.
[Pg 19]
“I won’t leave England till I have. You’re very concerned about this unknown lady, James?”
Jimmy ran his finger thoughtfully over the signature.
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1
ass
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| n.驴；傻瓜，蠢笨的人 | |
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outgrown
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| 长[发展] 得超过（某物）的范围( outgrow的过去分词 )； 长[发展]得不能再要（某物）； 长得比…快； 生长速度超过 | |
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3
odds
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| n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别 | |
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stunt
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| n.惊人表演，绝技，特技；vt.阻碍...发育，妨碍...生长 | |
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applicants
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| 申请人，求职人( applicant的名词复数 ) | |
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6
solely
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| adv.仅仅，唯一地 | |
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7
spoke
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| 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 | |
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8
etiquette
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| n.礼仪，礼节；规矩 | |
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straightforward
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| adj.正直的，坦率的；易懂的，简单的 | |
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expedient
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| adj.有用的，有利的；n.紧急的办法，权宜之计 | |
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11
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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12
legacy
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| n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西 | |
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13
memoirs
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| n.回忆录；回忆录传( mem,自oir的名词复数) | |
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14
revel
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| vi.狂欢作乐，陶醉；n.作乐，狂欢 | |
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15
oyster
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| n.牡蛎；沉默寡言的人 | |
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positively
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| adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实 | |
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relish
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| n.滋味，享受，爱好，调味品；vt.加调味料，享受，品味；vi.有滋味 | |
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malicious
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| adj.有恶意的，心怀恶意的 | |
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vindictive
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| adj.有报仇心的，怀恨的，惩罚的 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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civilized
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| a.有教养的，文雅的 | |
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virile
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| adj.男性的；有男性生殖力的；有男子气概的；强有力的 | |
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awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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mite
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| n.极小的东西；小铜币 | |
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monarch
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| n.帝王，君主，最高统治者 | |
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26
crook
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| v.使弯曲；n.小偷，骗子，贼；弯曲(处) | |
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daunted
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| 使（某人）气馁，威吓( daunt的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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rumour
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| n.谣言，谣传，传闻 | |
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rumours
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| n.传闻( rumour的名词复数 )；风闻；谣言；谣传 | |
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31
embezzle
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| vt.贪污，盗用；挪用(公款；公物等) | |
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severely
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| adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地 | |
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rambling
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| adj.[建]凌乱的，杂乱的 | |
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hospitably
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| 亲切地，招待周到地，善于款待地 | |
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pegging
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| n.外汇钉住，固定证券价格v.用夹子或钉子固定( peg的现在分词 )；使固定在某水平 | |
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beckoned
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| v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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jargon
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| n.术语，行话 | |
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accounting
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| n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表 | |
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39
skunk
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| n.臭鼬，黄鼠狼；v.使惨败，使得零分；烂醉如泥 | |
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40
blackmailing
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| 胁迫，尤指以透露他人不体面行为相威胁以勒索钱财( blackmail的现在分词 ) | |
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41
impudence
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| n.厚颜无耻；冒失；无礼 | |
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42
dame
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| n.女士 | |
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dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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44
lighting
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| n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光 | |
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45
prettily
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| adv.优美地；可爱地 | |
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