"But he is Her Highness"s enemy."
"Yes, Excellency--and yours also."
"Tell me all that you know," I urged, adopting a more conciliatory tone.
"It is outrageous that this oppressor of Russia should conspire to kill an innocent member of the Imperial Family."
"I know nothing of the circ.u.mstances. Excellency," he said, feigning entire ignorance.
"But he gave you orders to throw that bomb," I said. "What were your exact orders?"
"I am not likely to betray my employer," he laughed. "If you do not answer these questions, then I shall carry out my threat of exposure,"
Hartwig said in a hard, determined voice.
"Well," said the informer hesitatingly, "my orders were not to throw the bomb unless the Grand d.u.c.h.ess Natalia was in the carriage."
"Then the plot was to kill her--but unfortunately her father fell the victim of the dastardly outrage!" I cried.
"Yes," the man replied. "It was to kill her--and you, Excellency."
"But why?"
He shrugged his shoulders, and exhibited his palms in a gesture of complete ignorance.
"And your present intention is to effect in Brighton what you failed to do in Petersburg--eh?"
"I have no orders, and it certainly is not my intention," responded the man, whom I remembered at that moment had deliberately killed the girl Garine in order to preserve his secret.
I turned from him in loathing and disgust.
"But you tell me that General Markoff intends that we both shall come to an untimely end," I said a few moments later.
"He does, Excellency, and the ingenuity of the plot against you both is certainly one which betrays his devilish cunning," was the fellow"s reply. "I have, I a.s.sure you, no love for a man who holds my life in the hollow of his hand, and whose word I am compelled to obey on pain of exposure and death."
"You mean Markoff," I exclaimed. "Tell me something of this plot against me--so that I may be on my guard," I urged.
"I know nothing concerning it. For that very reason I went to Brighton yesterday, to try and discover something," he said.
"And what did you discover?"
"A very remarkable fact. At present it is only suspicion. I have yet to substantiate it."
"Cannot you tell me your suspicion?"
"Not until I have had an opportunity of proving it," was his quiet reply. "But I a.s.sure you that the observation I kept upon Her Imperial Highness and yourself was with no evil intent."
I smiled incredulously. It was hard indeed to believe a man of his subtle and unscrupulous character. All that Tack had told me crowded through my brain. As the catspaw of Markoff, it was not likely that he would tell me the truth.
Hartwig was leaning easily against the wooden mantelshelf, watching us keenly. Of a sudden an idea occurred to me, and addressing the informer, I said:
"I believe you are acquainted with my friend Madame de Rosen and her daughter. Tell me what you know concerning them."
"They were arrested and exiled to Siberia for the attempt in the Nevski on the return of the Emperor from the south," he said promptly.
Hartwig interrupted, saying gravely:
"And that attempt, Danilo Danilovitch, was conceived by you--conceived in order to strike terror into the Emperor"s heart. You formed the plot and handed over the list of the conspirators to your employer, Markoff-- you, the person known to the Party of the People"s Will as `The One.""
"I knew of the plot," he admitted. "And though I gave certain names to the police, I certainly did not include the names of Madame de Rosen or of Mademoiselle."
"Why was she arrested?"
He was silent for a few moments.
"Because her presence in Petersburg was dangerous to the General," he said at last sullenly.
"You know this--eh? You are certain of it--you have evidence, I mean?"
asked Hartwig.
"You ask me for the truth," the informer said, "and I tell you. I was extremely sorry for Madame and the young lady, for I knew them when I carried on my trade as bootmaker. An hour after their arrest, at about four o"clock in the morning, the General ordered me to go and search their house for certain letters which he described to me--letters which he was extremely anxious to obtain. I went alone, as he did not wish to alarm the neighbourhood by a domiciliary visit of the police. I searched the house for nearly nine hours, but failed to discover them.
While still engaged in the investigation I was recalled to the house where it is my habit to meet the General in secret, when he told me that by a false promise of release he had extracted from Madame a statement that the letters were no longer in her possession, and that Her Imperial Highness the Grand d.u.c.h.ess Natalia held them in safe-keeping. Madame, perfectly innocent as she was of any connection with the conspirators, expected to be released after telling the truth; but the General said that he had only laughed in her face and ordered her and her daughter to be sent off with the next convoy of prisoners--who were leaving for Siberia that same night. By this time the ladies are, I expect, already in the great forwarding-prison at Tomsk."
"And the letters?" I demanded, my blood boiling at hearing his story.
"I was ordered to search for them." Danilovitch replied. "The General gave me instructions how to enter the palace of the Grand Duke Nicholas and there to investigate the apartments of the Grand d.u.c.h.ess Natalia. I refused at first, knowing that if I were detected as an intruder I should be shot at sight by the sentries. But he insisted," the man added. "He told me that if I persisted in my refusal he would expose me as a spy. So I was compelled to make the attempt, well knowing that discovery meant certain death. The sentries have orders to shoot any intruder in the Grand Ducal palace. On four occasions I went there at imminent risk, and on the fourth I was successful. I found the letters concealed in a room which had once been used as Her Highness"s nursery."
"And what did you do with them?"
"I met the General at our usual meeting-place and handed them to him.
He was at first delighted. But a moment later, finding that the seal of the envelope in which were the letters had been broken, he charged me with reading them. I denied it, and--"
"Then you did not read them? You do not know what they contained, or who they were from?"
"They were from General Markoff himself. I looked at the signatures, but, alas! I had no time to read them. I drove straight to the meeting-place, where the General was awaiting me."
"They were from the General!" I echoed. "To whom?"
"They bore his signature--one a long letter, closely written," was the informer"s reply. "Seeing that the seal had been broken, the General flew into a sudden rage and declared that the Grand d.u.c.h.ess Natalia had learned what they contained. The words he used to me were: `The girl must be silenced--silenced at once, Danilovitch. And you must silence her. She knows the truth!""
"Well?" I asked.
"Well," he said, his mouth drawn and hard, "under compulsion and more threats of exposure, I launched the bomb, which, alas! killed her father, while the young lady escaped unhurt."
"Then he still intends that Her Highness shall die? His warning the other day was no idle attempt to terrorise me?"
"No, Excellency. Take every precaution. The General means mischief, for he is in hourly fear lest Her Highness should expose certain facts contained in those fateful letters which have already cost two ladies their liberty and a Grand Duke and several Cossacks their lives."
"Is this the actual truth?" asked Hartwig in a changed voice, looking the informer full in the face.
"Yes," he answered solemnly. "I have told you the truth; therefore I believe your solemn word that you will make no exposure to the Party."