"Oh, but gracious Fraulein, you must not say that!" cried the old woman, looking as much shocked as if her young guest had broken one of the commandments.
The girl laughed. "Why not?" she inquired. "Are the gentlemen of such importance that they mustn"t be criticized by strangers?"
Frau Yorvan was embarra.s.sed. "They are excellent patrons of mine, gracious Fraulein, that is all I meant," said she. "I cannot bear that unjust things should be thought of such--good gentlemen."
"I was only joking," the girl rea.s.sured her. "We are perfectly satisfied with this room, which you have made most comfortable.
All I care for is that the famous walks in the neighborhood shall not be private. I may, at least, walk as much as I like and even climb a little, I and my friend, Miss Manchester, who is a daring mountaineer," (with this she threw a glance at the middle-aged lady in black, who visibly started and grew wild-eyed in response) "for I suppose that your guests have not engaged the whole Schneehorn for their own."
The landlady"s hospitable smile returned. "No, gracious Fraulein. You are free to wander as you will, but do not, I beg you, go too far, or attempt any climbs of real difficulty, for they are not to be done without guides; and take care you do not stray into wild places where, by making some movement or sound before you were seen by the hunters, you might be mistaken for a chamois."
"Even our prowess is hardly likely to lead us into such peril as that," laughed the girl, who seemed much more friendly and inclined toward conversation than the two elders of the party. "But please wake us early to-morrow morning. My friend Miss Manchester and I would like to have breakfasted and be ready for a start by eight o"clock at latest."
Again the placid features of the lady in black quivered; and though she said nothing, Frau Yorvan pitied her. "Would you not wish, in any case, to have a guide?" she asked. "I could engage you an intelligent young man who--"
"Thank you, no," broke in the girl, decidedly. "A guide-book is preferable to a guide, for what we mean to do. We sha"n"t attempt any places which the book says are unsafe for amateurs. But what an excellent engraving that is over the fireplace, with the chamois horns above it. Isn"t that a portrait of your Emperor when he was a boy?"
The landlady"s eyes darted to the picture. "Ach, I had meant to carry it away," she muttered.
The girl"s quick ears caught the words. "Why should you carry it away?
Don"t you love the Emperor, that you would put his face out of sight?"
"Not love _Unser Leo_?" cried the old woman, horrified. "Why, we worship him, gracious Fraulein; we would die for him, any day, all of us mountain people--and yes, all Rhaetians, I believe. I could not let you go back to your own land with the idea that we do not love the n.o.blest Emperor country ever had. As for what I said about the portrait, I didn"t know that I spoke aloud, I am so used to mumbling to myself, since I began to grow deaf and old. But of course, I wished it put away only because it is such a poor thing, it does _Unser Leo_ no sort of justice. You--you would not recognize him from that picture, if you were to see him now."
With this excuse, Frau Yorvan hurried out to fetch another dish, which she said must be ready; to cool her hot face, and to scold herself for her stupidity, all the way down-stairs.
She was gone some time; and the girl who had, no doubt unwittingly, occasioned the old woman"s uneasiness, took advantage of her absence to laugh, excited, happy laughter.
"Poor, transparent old dear, so pleased and proud of her great secret, which she thinks she"s keeping so well!" she exclaimed. "I"m sure she doesn"t dream that she"s as easy to read as a book with big, big print. She"s in a sad fright now, lest we inconvenient foreigners should chance upon her grand gentlemen to-morrow, recognize one of them from the portrait, and spoil his precious incognito."
"Then--you think that _he_ is really here--in this out of the way eyrie?" half whispered the Grand d.u.c.h.ess.
"I feel sure he is," answered Princess Virginia.
For a moment there was silence. Then said the Grand d.u.c.h.ess, with an air of resignation, "Well, I suppose we should be glad--since we have come to Rhaetia for the purpose of--dear me, I can scarcely bring myself to say it."
"You may say it, since our dear old lamb of a Let.i.tia knows all about it, and is in with us," returned Virginia. "But--but I truly didn"t expect to find him _here_. One knows he comes sometimes; it"s been in the papers; but this time they had it that he"d gone to make a week"s visit to poor old General von Borslok at the Baths of Melina; and I thought, before we went to Kronburg with all our pretty letters of introduction, as he was away from the palace there, it would be idyllic to use up the time with a visit to Alleheiligen. I don"t want you and Let.i.tia to think that I was just making catspaws of you both, and forcing you without knowing, to help me unearth him in his lair.
Still, as he _is_ here--"
"Perhaps he isn"t," suggested the Grand d.u.c.h.ess. "I don"t see that you have much ground for fancying so."
"Oh, _ground_!" echoed Virginia, scornfully. "It"s instinct that I go upon, not ground. That woman"s face when she saw foreign tourists at her door, out of season, when she had a right to think she was safe from invasion. Her stammering about the best rooms being taken; her wish to get rid of us; her distress that she couldn"t possibly do so, without making matters worse. The way she talks of her "four gentlemen." Her horror at my _lese majeste_. Her confusion about the portraits; her wish to impress it upon us that _Unser Leo_ is quite changed. Instinct ought to be ashamed if it couldn"t play detective as far as that. But--of course we may not see him. If she can help it, we won"t. He won"t like being run to earth by tourists, when he is amusing himself; and perhaps the trusty landlady will send the intelligent young guide whom I refused, to warn him, so that if he chooses he can keep out of the way."
"I almost hope she may send," said the Grand d.u.c.h.ess. "I don"t think Providence wills a meeting here. You have brought no pretty dresses. I _should_ like him to see you first when you look your best, since, to your mind, so much depends upon his feelings in this matter."
"Our first meeting is--on the knees of the G.o.ds," murmured Virginia.
And then Frau Yorvan came into the room with a souffle.
CHAPTER III
A CHAMOIS HUNTER
"This is perfectly appalling!" groaned the unfortunate lady who pa.s.sed, for this adventure, under the name of Miss Manchester.
"Perfectly glorious!" amended her companion.
The elder lady pressed Baedeker to her bosom, and sat down, with some abruptness. "I shall have to stop here," she panted, "all the rest of my life, and have my meals and my night things sent up. I"m very sorry. But I"m certain I shall never be able to go back."
"Don"t be absurd, my poor dear; we"re absolutely safe," said Virginia.
"I may be a selfish wretch, but I wouldn"t for the world have brought you into danger. You needn"t go down yet. Let"s explore a little further. It"s easier than turning back. Surely you can go on. Baedeker says you can. In ten minutes you"ll be at the top of the _col_."
"You may as well tell me that I"ll be in my grave. It amounts to the same thing," wailed Miss Manchester, who was, in the sphere of happier duties, Miss Let.i.tia Portman, and had been the Princess"s governess.
"I can"t look down; I can"t look up, because I keep thinking of the unspeakable things behind. After I get my breath and have become resigned to my fate, I _may_ be comparatively comfortable here, for some years; but as to stirring either way, there"s no use dreaming of it."
"Well, you"ll make an ideal hermitess," said Virginia. "You"ve exactly the right features for that profession; austere, yet benevolent. But you"re not really afraid now?"
"Not so much, sitting down," admitted Miss Portman, slowly regaining her natural color.
"Do you think then, dear, that you"d relapse and lose your head or anything, if I just strolled on alone to the top of the _col_ for the view which the guide-book says is so fine, and then came back to organize a relief expedition, say in about half an hour or so?"
"No-o," said Miss Portman, "I suppose I can bear it. I may as well accustom myself to loneliness, as I am obliged to spend my remaining years on this spot. But I"m not at all sure the d.u.c.h.ess would approve--"
"You mean Lady Mowbray. She wouldn"t mind. She knows I"ve a good head and--physically--a good heart. Besides, I shall have only myself to look after. And one really doesn"t need a chaperon in going to make an early call on a mountain view."
"Dearest Princess, I"m not so sure of that, in regard to this mountain view."
"Miss Mowbray, please. You"re very subtle. But I really _haven"t_ come out to look for the Mountain View you refer to. You needn"t think it.
I don"t know where his lair is, but it"s probably miles from here, and if I knew I wouldn"t hunt him there. That would be _un peu trop fort_; and anyway, I"m inclined to believe that Mother is right about those dresses. I shall have such nice ones at Kronburg! So you see you can conscientiously give me your blessing and let me go."
"My dear! As if I could have suspected you would search for him! You are in Rhaetia not to pursue, but to give an Emperor, who wishes to have a certain Princess for his consort, a chance to fall in love with herself."
"If he will--if it can be so. But what do Helen Mowbray and Let.i.tia Manchester know about the love affairs of emperors and princesses? _Au revoir_, dear friend; I"m going. By and by, if you have courage to lift your eyes, you"ll see me waving a handkerchief flag at the rock-corner up there."
Virginia took the alpenstock which she had laid down, and began picking her way daintily yet pluckily toward the _col_ which she had named as her goal. There was another route to it, leading on to the highest peak of the Schneehorn, only to be dared by experienced climbers, but the way by which the girl and her companion had set out from Alleheiligen nearly four hours ago, was merely fatiguing, never dangerous, and Virginia knew that Miss Portman was safe, and not half as much frightened as she pretended.
They had started at eight, just as the September sun had begun to draw the night chill out of the keen mountain air; and now it was close upon twelve. The Princess was hungry.
In Nordeck, the frontier town of Rhaetia as you come in from Germany, she had bought rucksacks for herself and Miss Portman, to be used upon just such mountain excursions as this; and to-day the brown canvas bags were being tested for the first time. Each rucksack stored an adequate luncheon for its bearer, while on top, secured by straps pa.s.sed across the shoulders, lay a folded wrap to be used in case of rain.
Virginia"s burden grew heavy as she mounted, though at first its weight had seemed trifling. When she had waved her handkerchief at the turning, and pa.s.sed out of Miss Portman"s sight, it occurred to her that it would be clever to lighten the rucksack and satisfy her appet.i.te at the same time.
The one difficulty was that, in her present position, she could not safely unstrap the bag from her shoulders, open it, take out the parcel of luncheon, and strap it on again. The way was too narrow, and the rocks too slippery, to attempt such liberties; at a short distance, however, and only a little out of the path to the _col_, she could see a small green plateau, the very place for a rest. But could she reach it? The girl stood still, and looked wistfully across.
The place could be gained only by a scramble over a ledge of formidable rocks, and climbing in good earnest here and there, yet--if the thing could be done at all, it could be done in ten minutes, and to come back would be comparatively easy. Virginia was tempted.