The Mad King Read online

  IX

  THE KING'S GUESTS

  Once within the palace Barney sought the seclusion of a small roomoff the audience chamber. Here he summoned Butzow.

  "Lieutenant," said the American, "for the sake of a woman, a deadchild and an unhappy king I have become dictator of Lutha forforty-eight hours; but at noon upon the fifth this farce must cease.Then we must place the true Leopold upon the throne, or a newdictator must replace me.

  "In vain I have tried to convince you that I am not the king, andtoday in the cathedral so great was the temptation to take advantageof the odd train of circumstances that had placed a crown within myreach that I all but surrendered to it--not for the crown of gold,Butzow, but for an infinitely more sacred diadem which belongs tohim to whom by right of birth and lineage, belongs the crown ofLutha. I do not ask you to understand--it is not necessary--but thisyou must know and believe: that I am not Leopold, and that the trueLeopold lies in hiding in the sanatorium at Tafelberg, from whichyou and I, Butzow, must fetch him to Lustadt before noon on thefifth."

  "But, sire--" commenced Butzow, when Barney raised his hand.

  "Enough of that, Butzow!" he cried almost irritably. "I am sick ofbeing 'sired' and 'majestied'--my name is Custer. Call me that whenothers are not present. Believe what you will, but ride with me insecrecy to Tafelberg tonight, and together we shall bring backLeopold of Lutha. Then we may call Prince Ludwig into ourconfidence, and none need ever know of the substitution.

  "I doubt if many had a sufficiently close view of me today torealize the trick that I have played upon them, and if they note adifference they will attribute it to the change in apparel, for weshall see to it that the king is fittingly garbed before we exhibithim to his subjects, while hereafter I shall continue in khaki,which becomes me better than ermine."

  Butzow shook his head.

  "King or dictator," he said, "it is all the same, and I must obeywhatever commands you see fit to give, and so I will ride toTafelberg tonight, though what we shall find there I cannot imagine,unless there are two Leopolds of Lutha. But shall we also findanother royal ring upon the finger of this other king?"

  Barney smiled. "You're a typical hard-headed Dutchman, Butzow," hesaid.

  The lieutenant drew himself up haughtily. "I am not a Dutchman,your majesty. I am a Luthanian."

  Barney laughed. "Whatever else you may be, Butzow, you're a brick,"he said, laying his hand upon the other's arm.

  Butzow looked at him narrowly.

  "From your speech," he said, "and the occasional Americanisms intowhich you fall I might believe that you were other than the king butfor the ring."

  "It is my commission from the king," replied Barney. "Leopoldplaced it upon my finger in token of his royal authority to act inhis behalf. Tonight, then Butzow, you and I shall ride to Tafelberg.Have three good horses. We must lead one for the king."

  Butzow saluted and left the apartment. For an hour or two theAmerican was busy with tailors whom he had ordered sent to thepalace to measure him for the numerous garments of a royal wardrobe,for he knew the king to be near enough his own size that he mighteasily wear clothes that had been fitted to Barney; and it was partof his plan to have everything in readiness for the substitutionwhich was to take place the morning of the coronation.

  Then there were foreign dignitaries, and the heads of numerousdomestic and civic delegations to be given audience. Old Von derTann stood close behind Barney prompting him upon the royal dutiesthat had fallen so suddenly upon his shoulders, and none thought itstrange that he was unfamiliar with the craft of kingship, for wasit not common knowledge that he had been kept a close prisoner inBlentz since boyhood, nor been given any coaching for the dutiesPeter of Blentz never intended he should perform?

  After it was all over Prince Ludwig's grim and leathery face relaxedinto a smile of satisfaction.

  "None who witnessed the conduct of your first audience, sire," hesaid, "could for a moment doubt your royal lineage--if ever a manwas born to kingship, your majesty, it be you."

  Barney smiled, a bit ruefully, however, for in his mind's eye he sawa future moment when the proud old Prince von der Tann would knowthe truth of the imposture that had been played upon him, and theyoung man foresaw that he would have a rather unpleasant half-hour.

  At a little distance from them Barney saw Emma von der Tannsurrounded by a group of officials and palace officers. Since he hadcome to Lustadt that day he had had no word with her, and now hecrossed toward her, amused as the throng parted to form an aisle forhim, the men saluting and the women curtsying low.

  He took both of the girl's hands in his, and, drawing one throughhis arm, took advantage of the prerogatives of kingship to lead heraway from the throng of courtiers.

  "I thought that I should never be done with all the tiresomebusiness which seems to devolve upon kings," he said, laughing. "Allthe while that I should have been bending my royal intellect tomatters of state, I was wondering just how a king might find a wayto see the woman he loves without interruptions from the horde thatdogs his footsteps."

  "You seem to have found a way, Leopold," she whispered, pressing hisarm close to her. "Kings usually do."

  "It is not because I am a king that I found a way, Emma," hereplied. "It is because I am an American."

  She looked up at him with an expression of pleading in her eyes.

  "Why do you persist?" she cried. "You have come into your own, andthere is no longer aught to fear from Peter or any other. To me atleast, it is most unkind still to deny your identity."

  "I wonder," said Barney, "if your love could withstand the knowledgethat I am not the king."

  "It is the MAN I love, Leopold," the girl replied.

  "You think so now," he said, "but wait until the test comes, andwhen it does, remember that I have always done my best to undeceiveyou. I know that you are not for such as I, my princess, and when Ihave returned your true king to you all that I shall ask is that yoube happy with him."

  "I shall always be happy with my king," she whispered, and the lookthat she gave him made Barney Custer curse the fate that had failedto make him a king by birth.

  An hour later darkness had fallen upon the little city of Lustadt,and from a small gateway in the rear of the palace grounds twohorsemen rode out into the ill-paved street and turned their mounts'heads toward the north. At the side of one trotted a led horse.

  As they passed beneath the glare of an arc-light before a cafe atthe side of the public square, a diner sitting at a table upon thewalk spied the tall figure and the bearded face of him who rode afew feet in advance of his companion. Leaping to his feet the manwaved his napkin above his head.

  "Long live the king!" he cried. "God save Leopold of Lutha!"

  And amid the din of cheering that followed, Barney Custer ofBeatrice and Lieutenant Butzow of the Royal Horse rode out into thenight upon the road to Tafelberg.

  When Peter of Blentz had escaped from the cathedral he had hastilymounted with a handful of his followers and hurried out of Lustadtalong the road toward his formidable fortress at Blentz. Half wayupon the journey he had met a dusty and travel-stained horsemanhastening toward the capital city that Peter and his lieutenants hadjust left.

  At sight of the prince regent the fellow reined in and saluted.

  "May I have a word in private with your highness?" he asked. "Ihave news of the greatest importance for your ears alone."

  Peter drew to one side with the man.

  "Well," he asked, "and what news have you for Peter of Blentz?"

  The man leaned from his horse close to Peter's ear.

  "The king is in Tafelberg, your highness," he said.

  "The king is dead," snapped Peter. "There is an impostor in thepalace at Lustadt. But the real Leopold of Lutha was slain by YellowFranz's band of brigands weeks ago."

  "I heard the man at Tafelberg tell another that he was the king,"insisted the fellow. "Through the keyhole of his room I saw him takea great ring from his finger--a rin
g with a mighty ruby set in itscenter--and give it to the other. Both were bearded men with grayeyes--either might have passed for the king by the description uponthe placards that have covered Lutha for the past month. At first hedenied his identity, but when the other had convinced him that hesought only the king's welfare he at last admitted that he wasLeopold."

  "Where is he now?" cried Peter.

  "He is still in the sanatorium at Tafelberg. In room twenty-seven.The other promised to return for him and take him to Lustadt, butwhen I left Tafelberg he had not yet done so, and if you hasten youmay reach there before they take him away, and if there be anyreward for my loyalty to you, prince, my name is Ferrath."

  "Ride with us and if you have told the truth, fellow, there shall bea reward and if not--then there shall be deserts," and Peter ofBlentz wheeled his horse and with his company galloped on towardTafelberg.

  As he rode he talked with his lieutenants Coblich, Maenck, andStein, and among them it was decided that it would be best thatPeter stop at Blentz for the night while the others rode on toTafelberg.

  "Do not bring Leopold to Blentz," directed Peter, "for if it be hewho lies at Tafelberg and they find him gone it will be towardBlentz that they will first look. Take him--"

  The Regent leaned from his saddle so that his mouth was close to theear of Coblich, that none of the troopers might hear.

  Coblich nodded his head.

  "And, Coblich, the fewer that ride to Tafelberg tonight the surerthe success of the mission. Take Maenck, Stein and one other withyou. I shall keep this man with me, for it may prove but a plot tolure me to Tafelberg."

  Peter scowled at the now frightened hospital attendant.

  "Tomorrow I shall be riding through the lowlands, Coblich, and soyou may not find means to communicate with me, but before noon ofthe fifth have word at your town house in Lustadt for me of thesuccess of your venture."

  They had reached the point now where the road to Tafelberg branchesfrom that to Blentz, and the four who were to fetch the king wheeledtheir horses into the left-hand fork and cantered off upon theirmission.

  The direct road between Lustadt and Tafelberg is but little morethan half the distance of that which Coblich and his companions hadto traverse because of the wide detour they had made by ridingalmost to Blentz first, and so it was that when they cantered intothe little mountain town near midnight Barney Custer and LieutenantButzow were but a mile or two behind them.

  Had the latter had even the faintest of suspicions that the identityof the hiding place of the king might come to the knowledge of Peterof Blentz they could have reached Tafelberg ahead of Coblich and hisparty, but all unsuspecting they rode slowly to conserve the energyof their mounts for the return trip.

  In silence the two men approached the grounds surrounding thesanatorium. In the soft dirt of the road the hoofs of their mountsmade no sound, and the shadows of the trees that border the front ofthe enclosure hid them from the view of the trooper who held fourriderless horses in a little patch of moonlight that broke throughthe opening in the trees at the main gate of the institution.

  Barney was the first to see the animals and the man.

  "S-s-st," he hissed, reining in his horse.

  Butzow drew alongside the American.

  "What can it mean?" asked Barney. "That fellow is a trooper, but Icannot make out his uniform."

  "Wait here," said Butzow, and slipping from his horse he creptcloser to the man, hugging the dense shadows close to the trees.

  Barney reined in nearer the low wall. From his saddle he could seethe grounds beyond through the branches of a tree. As he looked hisattention was suddenly riveted upon a sight that sent his heart intohis throat.

  Three men were dragging a struggling, half-naked figure down thegravel walk from the sanatorium toward the gate. One kept a handclapped across the mouth of the prisoner, who struck and fought hisassailants with all the frenzy of despair.

  Barney leaped from his saddle and ran headlong after Butzow. Thelieutenant had reached the gate but an instant ahead of him when thetrooper, turning suddenly at some slight sound of the officer's footupon the ground, detected the man creeping upon him. In an instantthe fellow had whipped out a revolver, and raising it firedpoint-blank at Butzow's chest; but in the same instant a figure shotout of the shadows beside him, and with the report of the revolver aheavy fist caught the trooper on the side of the chin, crumpling himto the ground as if he were dead.

  The blow had been in time to deflect the muzzle of the firearm, andthe bullet whistled harmlessly past the lieutenant.

  "Your majesty!" exclaimed Butzow excitedly. "Go back. He might havekilled you."

  Barney leaped to the other's side and grasping him by the shoulderswheeled him about so that he faced the gate.

  "There, Butzow," he cried, "there is your king, and from the looksof it he never needed a loyal subject more than he does this moment.Come!" Without waiting to see if the other followed him, BarneyCuster leaped through the gate full in the faces of the astonishedtrio that was dragging Leopold of Lutha from his sanctuary.

  At sight of the American the king gave a muffled cry of relief, andthen Barney was upon those who held him. A stinging uppercut liftedCoblich clear of the ground to drop him, dazed and bewildered, atthe foot of the monarch he had outraged. Maenck drew a revolver onlyto have it struck from his hand by the sword of Butzow, who hadfollowed closely upon the American's heels.

  Barney, seizing the king by the arm, started on a run for thegateway. In his wake came Butzow with a drawn sword beating backStein, who was armed with a cavalry saber, and Maenck who had nowdrawn his own sword.

  The American saw that the two were pressing Butzow much too closelyfor safety and that Coblich had now recovered from the effects ofthe blow and was in pursuit, drawing his saber as he ran. Barneythrust the king behind him and turned to face the enemy, at Butzow'sside.

  The three men rushed upon the two who stood between them and theirprey. The moonlight was now full in the faces of Butzow and theAmerican. For the first time Maenck and the others saw who it wasthat had interrupted them.

  "The impostor!" cried the governor of Blentz. "The false king!"

  Imbued with temporary courage by the knowledge that his side had theadvantage of superior numbers he launched himself full upon theAmerican. To his surprise he met a sword-arm that none might haveexpected in an American, for Barney Custer had been a pupil of theredoubtable Colonel Monstery, who was, as Barney was wont to say,"one of the thanwhomest of fencing masters."

  Quickly Maenck fell back to give place to Stein, but not before theAmerican's point had found him twice to leave him streaming bloodfrom two deep flesh wounds.

  Neither of those who fought in the service of the king saw thetrembling, weak-kneed figure, which had stood behind them, turn andscurry through the gateway, leaving the men who battled for him totheir fate.

  The trooper whom Barney had felled had regained consciousness and ashe came to his feet rubbing his swollen jaw he saw a disheveled,half-dressed figure running toward him from the sanatorium grounds.The fellow was no fool, and knowing the purpose of the expedition ashe did he was quick to jump to the conclusion that this fleeingpersonification of abject terror was Leopold of Lutha; and so it wasthat as the king emerged from the gateway in search of freedom heran straight into the widespread arms of the trooper.

  Maenck and Coblich had seen the king's break for liberty, and thelatter maneuvered to get himself between Butzow and the open gatethat he might follow after the fleeing monarch.

  At the same instant Maenck, seeing that Stein was being worsted bythe American, rushed in upon the latter, and thus relieved, therat-faced doctor was enabled to swing a heavy cut at Barney whichstruck him a glancing blow upon the head, sending him stunned andbleeding to the sward.

  Coblich and the governor of Blentz hastened toward the gate, pausingfor an instant to overwhelm Butzow. In the fierce scrimmage thatfollowed the lieutenant was overthrown, though not before his swordhad
passed through the heart of the rat-faced one. Deserting theirfallen comrade the two dashed through the gate, where to theirimmense relief they found Leopold safe in the hands of the trooper.

  An instant later the precious trio, with Leopold upon the horse ofthe late Dr. Stein, were galloping swiftly into the darkness of thewood that lies at the outskirts of Tafelberg.

  When Barney regained consciousness he found himself upon a cotwithin the sanatorium. Close beside him lay Butzow, and above themstood an interne and several nurses. No sooner had the Americanregained his scattered wits than he leaped to the floor. The interneand the nurses tried to force him back upon the cot, thinking thathe was in the throes of a delirium, and it required his best effortsto convince them that he was quite rational.

  During the melee Butzow regained consciousness; his wound being assuperficial as that of the American, the two men were soon donningtheir clothing, and, half-dressed, rushing toward the outer gate.

  The interne had told them that when he had reached the scene of theconflict in company with the gardener he had found them and anotherlying upon the sward.

  Their companion, he said, was quite dead.

  "That must have been Stein," said Butzow. "And the others hadescaped with the king!"

  "The king?" cried the interne.

  "Yes, the king, man--Leopold of Lutha. Did you not know that he whohas lain here for three weeks was the king?" replied Butzow.

  The interne accompanied them to the gate and beyond, but everywherewas silence. The king was gone.