"I feel sure," said Sir Hook.u.m Bannerjee, seeing be was expected to say something, "that Prince Utirupa Singh would be acceptable to the Rajputs themselves, who are long weary of Gungadhura"s way. But he is not married. It is a pity always that a reigning prince should be unmarried; there are so many opportunities in that case for intrigue, and for mistakes."
"Gad!" exclaimed Willoughby de Wing, dropping his monocle. "What a chance to marry him to that young Princess Whatshername--you know the one I mean--the one that"s said to masquerade in men"s clothes and dance like the devil, and all that kind of thing. I know nothing of politics, but--what a chance!"
"G.o.d forbid!" laughed Samson. "That young woman is altogether too capable of trouble without a throne to play with! I suspect her, as it happens, of very definite and dangerous intentions along another line connected with the throne of Sialpore. But I know how to disappoint her and stop her game. I intend to recommend--for the second time, by the way--that she, also, should be sent to Europe for a proper education!
But the point I"m driving at is this: are we agreed as to the proper course to take with Gungadhura?"
They nodded.
"Then, as I see it, there"s no desperate hurry. Norwood will need time to gather evidence; I"ll need specific facts, not hearsay, to ram down Gungadhura"s throat. I"ll send a wire to the high commissioner and another to Simla, embodying what we recommend, and--what do you say to sending for a battery or two?"
"Good!" said Willoughby de Wing. "A very good thought indeed! I know nothing of politics, except this; that there"s nothing like guns to overawe the native mind and convince him that the game"s up! Let"s see-- who"d come with the guns? Coburn, wouldn"t he? Yes, Coburn. He"s my junior in the service. Yes, a very good notion indeed. Ask for two batteries by all means."
"I"ll tell them not to hurry," said Samson. "It"s hot weather. They can make it in easy stages."
"By jove!" said Topham. "They"ll be here in time for the polo. Won"t they beef!"
"Talking of polo, who"s to captain the other side? Is it known yet?" asked De Wing.
"Utirupa," answered Topham. "There was never any doubt of that.
We"ve got Collins to captain us, and Latham and Cartwright, besides me.
We"ll give him the game of his life!"
"That settles quite an important point," said Samson. "The polo tournament-- after it, rather--is the time to talk to Utirupa. If we keep quiet until then-- all of us, I mean--there"ll be no chance of the cat jumping before the State Department pulls the string. I feel sure, from inside information, that Headquarters would like nothing known about this coup d"etat until it"s consummated. Explanations afterward, and the fewer the better! Have a drink anybody?"
In the outer office beyond the curtain Sita Ram cautiously refitted the knot into its hole, and sat down to write hurriedly while details were fresh in mind. Ten minutes afterward, when the conference had broken up in small-talk, he asked permission to absent himself for an hour or two.
He said he had a debt to pay across the river, to a man whose wife was ill.
One hour and a half later by Sita Ram"s wrist watch, Ismail, an Afridi gate-keeper at present apparently without a job, started off on a racing camel full-pelt for the border, with a letter in his pocket addressed to a merchant by way of ostensible business, and ten rupees for solace to the Desert Police. Tucked away in the ample folds of his turban was a letter to Yasmini, giving Sita Ram"s accurate account of what had happened at the secret conference.
Chapter Eighteen
Safe rules for defeating a rascal are three, And the first of them all is appear to agree.
The second is boggle at points that don"t matter, Hold out for expense and emolument fatter.
The third is put wish-to-seem-wise on the shelf And keep your eventual plan to yourself.
Giving heed to the three with your voice and eyes level You can turn the last trick by out-trumping the devil.
"Be discreet, Blaine--please be discreet!"
Meanwhile, Gungadhura was not inactive, nor without spies of his own, who told him more or less vaguely that trouble was cooking for him in the English camp. A letter he expected from the Mahsudi tribe had not reached him. It was the very letter he had hoped to show to Samson in proof of Mahsudi villainy and his own friendship; but he rather feared it had fallen into secret service hands, in which case he might have a hard time to clear himself.
Then there was the murder of Mukhum Da.s.s. He had not been able to resist that opportunity, when Patali reported to him what Mukhum Da.s.s had been seen to make away with. And now he had the secret of the treasure in his possession--implicit directions, and a map! He suspected they had been written by some old priest, or former rajah"s servant, in the hope of a chance for treachery, and hidden away by Jengal Singh with the same object. There were notes on the margins by Jengal Singh. The thing was obviously genuine. But the worst of it was Patali knew all about it now, and that cursed idiot Blaine had complained to Samson of burglary, after he learned that the cellar door was broken open by the money-lender. Why hadn"t he come to himself, he wondered, and been satisfied with a string of promises? That would have been the courteous thing to do. Instead of that, now Samson"s spies were nosing about, and only the G.o.ds knew what they might discover. The man who had done the murder was safely out of the way-- probably in Delhi by that time, or on his way there; but that interfering a.s.s Norwood might be awake for once, and if the murderer should happen to get caught, and should confess--as hired murderers do sometimes--it would need an awful lot of expert lying and money, too, to clear himself.
With funds--ample extravagant supplies of ready cash, he felt he could even negotiate the awkward circ.u.mstance that he himself was deeply in debt to Mukhum Da.s.s at the time of the murder. Money and brains combined can accomplish practically anything. Delhi and Bombay and Calcutta were full of clever lawyers. The point was, he must hurry.
And he did not dare trust any one with knowledge of his secret, except Patali, who had wormed out some and guessed the rest, because of the obvious risk of Samson getting wind of it through spies and so forestalling him. He felt he had Samson"s character estimated nicely.
Arguing with himself--distracted between fear on one hand, and Patali"s importunity on the other, he reached the conclusion that d.i.c.k Blaine was his only safe reliance. The American seemed to have an obsession for written contracts, and for enforcing the last letter of them. Well and good, he would make another contract with d.i.c.k Blaine, and told Patali so, she agreeing that the American was the safest tool to use. She saw herself already with her arms up to the shoulders in the treasure of Sialpore.
"The American has few friends," she said. "He smokes a pipe, and thinks, and now that they say his wife has gone away there is less chance than ever of his talking."
"He will need to be paid," said Gungadhura.
"There will be plenty to pay him with!" she answered, her eyes gleaming.
So Gungadhura, with his face still heavily bandaged, drove in a lumbering closed carriage up the rough track to the tunnel d.i.c.k had blasted in the hill-side. The carriage could not go close to the tunnel-mouth, because the track was only wide enough just there for the dump-carts to come and go. So he got out and walked into the tunnel unattended. d.i.c.k was used to seeing him about the works in any case and never objected to explaining things, several times over on occasion.
He found d.i.c.k superintending the careful erection of a wall of rock and cement, and he thought for an instant that the American looked annoyed to see him there. But d.i.c.k a.s.sumed his poker expression the moment afterward, and you couldn"t have guessed whether he was glad or sorry.
"You block the tunnel?" the maharajah asked.
"The vein"s disappeared," said d.i.c.k. "The rock"s all faulty here this and that way. I"m shoring up the end to keep the roof from falling down on us, and next I"m going to turn sharp at right angles and try to find the end of the vein where it broke off."
"You are too near the fort in any case," said the maharajah. "No use driving under the fort."
"What do you propose I should do?" d.i.c.k answered a trifle testily.
"Dig elsewhere."
"What, and sc.r.a.p this outlay?"
"Yes. I have a reason. A particular--eh--reason."
d.i.c.k nodded, poker face set solid.
The maharajah paused. His advantage was that his face was all smothered in the bandages, and the dim light in the tunnel was another good ally. His back, too, was toward the entrance, so that the American"s chance of reading between the words was remarkably slight. d.i.c.k"s back was against the uncompleted masonry.
"Could I--eh--count on you for--eh--very absolute silence?"
"I talk like that parrot in the story," d.i.c.k answered.
"You--eh--know a little now of Sialpore, Mr. Blaine. You--eh--understand how easily--eh--rumors get about. A little--eh--foundation and--eh-- up-side-down pyramids of fancy--eh? You comprehend me?"
"Sure, I get you."
"Eh--you have a good working party."
"Fine!" said d.i.c.k. "Just about broke in. Got the gang working pretty well to rights at last."
"Would you--eh--it would take a long time to get such another party of laborers--eh--trained to work well and swiftly?"
"Months!" said d.i.c.k. "Unless you"ve got tame wizards up your sleeve."