Arthur W. Marchmont

“ She flung her arms round my neck and clung to me. "Don't make me go, Jack! Don't, if you love me," she pleaded. "I—I can't bear the thought of leaving you."
"It's because I do love you with all my heart that I wish you to go. It's the only way in which our love can ever end as we wish." I pressed my lips to hers. She was trembling like an aspen.
"Bulich! Bulich! Are you ready?" It was the farmer's voice, and Nessa shuddered convulsively at the sound. ”

“ I studied Feldmann carefully. He was a handsome fellow; fair, blue-eyed, rather round-faced and weak; but he had a very pleasant smile which I saw often, for he smiled every time he looked at Rosa. But not once did he address me; and his dislike and hostility were plain each time he glanced in my direction.
He certainly wasn't the man I would have chosen to trust; but beggars can't be choosers, and I had to be satisfied with the fact that both Rosa and Nessa herself were ready to vouch for him. ”

“ Von Erstein, you will know where I found the enclosed just as I know why you left what I found there. You think to ruin me. I am not the man you believe me to be and can prove my innocence by means of which you can have no conception. Enough that I tell you I have sufficiently recovered my memory to protect myself against your devilish malice. The enclosed proves I am ready to cry a truce.—Johann Lassen. ”

“ The fact that there had been only two men as cabin passengers on the Burgen was like a mine sprung under my feet. I had reckoned on being able to recover my memory at any necessary moment; but this cut the ground from under me. I couldn't become Jimmy. That was a cert. And I certainly couldn't become any one else, because every lie I might tell would most surely be scrupulously investigated.
Poor Nessa! I was a heap more troubled about her and her mother than about myself. Whether the von Reblings knew me or not, the result would be much the same to her. ”

“ We were up again in a moment. Nessa laughed strangely and hysterically. "I'm all right, Jack," she cried breathlessly. "Mind the suit case;" and then clutched me convulsively and fainted.
It wasn't surprising, considering that we had had so narrow a squeak for it, and I could estimate the effect upon her by my own general shakiness. What amazed me was that in such a crisis, when death had been a matter of seconds almost, she had seemed to think more about that blessed suit case than her own safety. ”

“ Despite the mysterious telegram I still had faith in von Gratzen's concluding assurance—"Whatever happens I'll stand by you, my boy."
All the same it was a deplorable business, especially for Nessa; and that worried me desperately. We were both sure to be locked up; and Germany is one of those insalubrious countries where it's very difficult to get out of gaol when once the doors have closed on you. Even if the thing were explained at Osnabrück, it would be impossible for her to continue her journey that night; and when she would be able to do so, Heaven alone knew. ”

“ Come to the police and tell your story; but I warn you beforehand that if you dare to utter a word against me like that, you're a ruined man, lock, stock, and barrel. Behind me in this affair is one of the most powerful men in the whole Empire, whose arm is long enough to reach even cunning Farmer Glocken, squeeze him to a jelly, and leave the remnants to rot in gaol. And he'll do it, Glocken, as sure as my real name isn't Hans Bulich, the instant I tell him the scurvy tricks you've tried with me to-day. ”

“ While I was removing the traces of the scrap, Hans told me a good deal more about Nita and the position of affairs in the von Gratzen household, together with his impressions of Nita's father.
"I think he's a regular bear, you know. He is to me; but then he doesn't like me any more than I do him, worse luck," he said dolefully.
"Do you think the best way to get any one to like you is to begin by disliking him?"
"I didn't begin it; but he always scowls when he finds me here, talks to me as if I was a kid of ten, and calls me 'Hansikin.' It makes me regularly sick, I can tell you. ”

“ I thought it awfully funny, Herr Lassen, to tell the truth; at least I should have done if it had been any one else; but father always has a strong motive in such things. If he asked me one question he must have asked fifty, I'm sure, taking me right over every incident of yesterday, to find out whether in beating off those awful men you had ever once used your feet. I told him I was sure you hadn't; and he seemed to think it was a most extraordinary thing for a German to have used only his fists. ”

“ When I got back to the room von Erstein was on his feet also ready to go. "Oh, don't hurry away, beloved; this is an excellent chance for a pretty little love scene. Mix yourself a drink, have a cigar, and be your own cheerful sprightly self."
The scowl which greeted this was a real gem.
"What a seraphic smile! No wonder that every one loves you so and worships the ground you tread on." ”

“ What time and day?"
"Come and lunch with me to-morrow. In the morning you'll be wanted in the Amtstrasse; Baron von Gratzen, you know. Come on to me from him. I can open your eyes to a thing or two; and I'm altogether mistaken if we can't come to understand one another thoroughly. I'll manage to refresh that lapsed memory of yours, Lassen, and perhaps find the real reason for it."
"The Rotterdam people put it down to shock," I replied, as if I had not understood him. ”

“ It was a very puzzle of puzzles, especially in view of the unreliable vagaries of German officials in general and of what Rosa and the rest had said about von Gratzen in particular.
What a lovely mix up it would be if his suggestion materialized and Nessa and I were packed off together under official protection! It seemed a million times too good to be even thinkable. Compared with such a gloriously gorgeous plan, our little conspiracy scheme seemed almost contemptibly mean and commonplace; scarcely worth bothering about for a moment. ”

“ I managed to reply, for I was fast getting as excited as Nessa herself.
"Oh, thank God for that! Then you have seen him since I left? Where is he? Still in Lingen? Please don't keep me in suspense."
"He is in Holland, madam. I crossed the frontier with him."
"And you've come to take me to him, of course? Oh, you are indeed what he says, a friend. Can't we go now, this instant? I am ready. You're sure he's not in any trouble? Do tell me, please, at once."
"He is not in trouble, but he does not wish me to take you to him, madam. There is something you must learn first. ”

“ Nessa had listened in the greatest amazement. "Who on earth am I travelling with?" she cried. "Do you mean that you are able to have trains stopped at your mere nod?"
"I'll tell you who you're travelling with in a moment, but let me think whether I dare send that wire." It wasn't long before I decided to risk it. Von Gratzen himself had suggested I should get out of the way for a time: even go to a distance: and would understand the importance of the ruined authority, since I could not return when he needed me without it. ”

“ Nessa laughed gently. "You don't understand girls, Jack. Her mind was made up before she left us two together. She's one of the kindest-hearted souls in the world."
But Rosa seemed in no hurry to come back to us, and before she could tell us her decision, the opportunity passed, for Hans came in with a man whom Nessa whispered to me was Feldmann himself. ”

“ If I had been going to stop in Berlin, I might have taken von Erstein's enmity seriously; but as it was I could afford to laugh at him, for a few days at the most would see both Nessa and me out of the country, if the luck only held.
I was so late in reaching the Gallenstrasse, where von Erstein had his sumptuous flat, that he had already begun lunch. "I'd given you up, Lassen," he said as I entered. "Thought something might have happened with old Gratz to detain you. He's a downy old bird. Sit there, will you. Everything all right?" ”

“ That's about as far as we can get to-day; but there's one thing I should tell you. There is some one in Berlin who knows you and declares that your loss of memory is a mere pretence, and that you have assumed it because of some exceedingly sinister business in which you were involved a year or two ago."
I could smile at that sincerely. "Can you tell me his name?"
He paused a moment. "There will be no harm, if you keep it to yourself; I don't believe the story, but then I know the man too well. It is Count von Erstein."
"He's a scoundrel, I know that; but it may be the truth, of course." ”

“ I soon knew what his real object was; he has a friend, a man like himself, who is in command of one of the concentration camps: the one at Krustadt: and—but you can guess. There was only one thing for me to do, and I prepared for it. I have the poison upstairs."
"Nessa!"
"No woman can go through such an ordeal and come out unchanged. I should have made a fight for it, of course. I told Rosa, and, although she was horrified at first, she saw it afterwards, and then she got Herr Feldmann to get me an identification card as Hans Bulich, and helped me get the disguise. ”

“ The sight of the old Jew, his police companion, and von Welten knocked me all to pieces for the moment. We were done. That was a certainty. I could have bluffed the Jew, probably, with the official authority which von Gratzen had given me; but von Welten was what Jimmy Lamb would have called a very different proposition.
"I think I'll have a cigarette," I said; and pulled up to light it and try to think what to do.
"Whatever's the matter, Jack?" whispered Nessa. "Your hand shakes like anything and you're looking awful." ”

“ In Berlin—Johann Lassen?"
"You don't look pretty when you snarl like that, Glocken; and if you believe I'm Johann Lassen, you're a braver man than I think. We're alone here; and if I were that man, do you think I'd let you live to tell the police when a tap from this spanner of mine would silence you for ever?"
That hadn't occurred to him and he jumped away from me as if dreading an instant attack.
"I'm not going to touch you, man; on the contrary I'm going to make it easy for you. I'll give you a lift into Lingen in Fischer's car and we'll stop at the police station, if you like. ”

“ Rosa laughed. "That's a new thing for Lottchen, I can tell you; she hates men as a rule."
"You won't hate me, Lottchen, will you?" I said, smoothing her wondrous hair. She shook her head and smiled up at me and then laid her face against my shoulder.
"Don't worry Johann. He's got a bad face-ache." ”

“ I stammered.
"Well, she'd better be here if you wish to catch the train. There's only another minute and they'll start on the tick."
Oh, I was surely dreaming. In a dream I beckoned to Nessa, who came hurrying up; in a dream von Welten was introduced and rushed us through the barrier to a compartment he'd already secured for us; in a dream he stood by the carriage door till we started, saying he thought it better for us to travel alone; and in a dream we shook hands out of the carriage window, and he waved to us as the train steamed out of the station. ”

“ I don't deny you're a white man enough now; but what if you got your memory back? It might change you into something very different. I have to think of that, you know. You might be mad enough to—to do anything; perhaps even murder me. You're not surprised it makes me think, are you? I don't wish to be made into an honest woman only to be murdered."
This was altogether so different from her previous attitude, that it was clear some one had been coaching her; and of course it could only be von Erstein. "You need not fear that, Anna." ”

“ Rosa and Nessa were in much the same hilarious mood, and might have been arranging the details of a wedding rather than a little conspiracy against the Government.
They had it all cut and dried, and my crude plan was hailed as if it had been a piece of the most wonderful strategy in the world.
"Oscar will help us all he can," said Rosa, blushing a bit as she used his christian name; "and he can get the passports and everything without any trouble. He has his already, and suggests that we shall have one for Hans as well. I've seen Hans, and he has consented to go if he can get leave. ”

“ Any one who knows the attitude of the average German civilian toward the army will understand the strength of the cards I held. The officer's uniform, an army motor, the fact that Vibach was expected, the possession of an official authority duly signed and stamped, all these were so many self-evident proofs of my good faith, thoroughly calculated to impose on even a sharp-witted business man. If I were accepted as Vibach, nothing short of some stupid blunder could cause the scheme to fail. There was scarcely room even for a blunder, indeed, for the plan seemed almost fool proof. ”

“ Do you know what the job is?" I asked Braun.
"Pulitz didn't know either," he said, shaking his head.
"Who's Pulitz?"
"The blabber who keeps the Halbermond," replied Fischer irritably. "He must have lost his head to say a word about you. It wouldn't matter if you were twenty years older; but there, he was always a fool and always will be, I suppose."
"Who's the flying man?"
"I don't know. Stranger here; just driven up in his car. If he'd been any one any of us knew, we might have done something."
"Doesn't the Halbermond man, Pulitz, know him?" ”

“ I am not Johann Lassen. I am an Englishman and my name is Jack Lancaster. Nessa and I are old friends, and we were discussing the question of telling you when you came in," I said in a slow deliberate tone.
She was literally astounded and could not at once grasp all that my words meant. She turned to Nessa as if appealing for confirmation. "Nessa!" she exclaimed, much too loudly to be safe.
"Let me tell you why it is necessary not to speak loudly. You have a spy in the house: the servant I have heard you call Gretchen;" ”

“ Rosa was with her, and both were nervous at not having heard earlier how matters were going, for it was then more than a quarter past seven.
"I've been worrying awfully," said Nessa. "Is anything wrong?"
"Not a bit of it. Everything's gloriously right. I've got our tickets, and all you've to do is to be at the station."
"But what's happened?" exclaimed Rosa.
"I haven't time to tell you now. I'm sorry; but I have to rush back to my rooms and get something.—By Jove!" I broke off in a cold sweat as the meaning of von Gratzen's look at my suggestion about writing dawned on me. ”

“ It was all ridiculously easy. Pulitz, the hotel proprietor, met me in the hall with obsequious servility, hoping I had enjoyed my lunch. I swore at him in true Vibach style, cursed the lunch, told him to give me the bill, swore again at the charge as an imposition, and lurched out hiccoughing profanity and demanding my car.
Truly the gods were on my side, for it turned out that the chauffeur had gone to get something to eat. The car was mine; and a very excellent car it was. ”

“ I did my utmost to lead Nessa to think I took the position lightly; but I was in reality almost desperately anxious, and every moment of Rosa's indecision added to the disquieting tension of suspense. If she went against us, I could see nothing but a mess of trouble ahead; and I was only too conscious of how big the danger to her would loom in her German-disciplined mind. They all go in deadly fear of the authorities ”

“ The farmer watched me for a time; then talked to Nessa, who made great play with the Hans impersonation; and I found my chance. I was right. The farmer fed his cattle on very original diet; coffee, sugar, and cocoa seemed to be considerable ingredients, judging by the evidences I found under the swedes and hay. And his other farm was at Lingen! And Lingen was close to the Dutch frontier!
If circumstantial evidence went for anything, this meant that the chief use of the car was for smuggling, and that the agricultural produce was to pull the wool over the eyes of the curious. ”

“ Even when we quickened up speed through the outskirts of the city, I had hard work to wake up from that tremendously splendid dream. But Nessa was very much awake and boiling over with excitement, curiosity and delight. "What's the matter with you, Jack? Aren't you just mad with joy? I am." ”

“ We had stopped at some station the name of which I couldn't see and stuck there some minutes.
"Can't be anything wrong, can there?" asked Nessa nervily.
"Probably a troop train. It's all right, we're off again."
But it was not a troop train that had stopped us. It was a very different cause, as we soon knew, for the brute of a major burst into our compartment flourishing a telegram and cursing me volubly.
"So we've got the truth about you, Mr. Englishman, at last. You infernal scoundrel," he cried viciously. "You wanted a telegram from your friend and patron, von Gratzen, did you? ”

“ For a few moments she was too overcome to speak. "What—do you—think it all means?" she stammered brokenly.
"Do you know Count von Erstein?"
Her hand went to her throat as she tried to reply, making a swallowing, half-choking motion. "You don't believe—that I had anything—to do with all that?"
"Oh no, Anna. I am sure you had not. I have told the authorities——"
"The police?" she broke in. It was almost a scream.
"Not the police. But, of course, a man can't let any one attempt his life and just sit down under it. I have a very influential friend——" I paused intentionally. ”

“ My wits were beginning to clear by that time; and I was glancing about the room wondering who had been brute enough to commit the murder and what I had better do, when I made a discovery that told me everything and turned the blood in my veins icy cold.
In examining the body I had disarranged the bedclothes slightly, and by the side of the neck, just where it would have fallen from the murderer's finger, lay a ring.
Von Erstein's! The puzzle ring he had once shown and explained to me! It was impossible to mistake it; and there was probably not another ring like it in Berlin. ”