CHAPTER XXXVIII.
THE MANTLE OF NAPOLEON.
"'Onthe contrary,' said the Dumpling, with a short laugh of devilish triumph, 'on the contrary, it is quite possible with a King so trustful that he goes out for an evening stroll unattended. I admit that it cost us much laying of plans, and that we had mapped out, and prepared for the abduction, half a hundred times before the actual chance came which it was safe to take. But, as you know, my dear Rissler, I don't do things by halves. London is practically in my hands, and when the fact of the King's disappearance leaks out, and we carry out the master-stroke which is planned to come off to-morrow, the campaign will practically be at an end, and victory, absolute and assured, be ours. They are doing their best at Court to keep the King's disappearance secret, and have even gone so far, I am told, as to fix up an imitation King, to come to the window and bow and show himself, and dupe the public—as, for some inexplicablereason, they always do try to dupe the public when the health or the life or the death of royal persons is concerned. But they can't keep the secret much longer, and now that London is in our hands, and his Majesty is here in safe keeping and our prisoner, I trust and believe that he will prove reasonable and accede to our very moderate terms.'
"It is, perhaps, not difficult for a King to impress onlookers with his kingliness, when he is throned and robed and surrounded by bowing courtiers, or when he is seen at the head of his army. But never had King of England looked kinglier than King Edward the Seventh looked when, a prisoner and alone, in squalid, sordid surroundings, he turned, and thundered out:
"'Terms! I make no terms with murderers!'"
"'Murderers!'" hissed the Dumpling, menacingly. 'Remember that you are in my hands, my prisoner, unarmed and defenceless, and take back that word, or by God you shall answer for it with your life.'
"'I am in God's hands,' replied the King quietly, 'and He will see to it that I amsoon taken out of the hands of such as you. As for your threats,' he laughed contemptuously, 'I will take back no word of what I have said, even to save my life. But I waste breath arguing with one who is a madman as well as a murderer!'
"'And when your Majesty is once more in possession of the liberty which he is so convinced God is about to restore to him, what do you propose to do with me?' inquired the Dumpling mockingly.
"'With you!' said the King stolidly, but with infinite contempt. 'With you! Nothing. I am this country's King, not the common hangman. You shall be dealt with by the proper authorities—make yourself easy about that. You shall be examined, and if you are pronounced insane, will be clapped between walls, out of the way of working mischief to yourself or to others. If you are sane, you will be shot or hanged, or whatever it is they do to traitors and treason-workers. I'm tolerably well versed in methods of procedure, but fortunately you are the first traitor who's directly crossed my path.
"'But listen to me, you sir. Whatever punishment it is that is meted out tosuch as you—whether hanging by the common hangman or whether it be to be shot like a dangerous dog—I'll lift no hand to stay it. Not because of the personal indignity and affront you have dared to offer to me, but because' (his voice rose, and he looked terrible in his kingly wrath), 'because' (and now there was a tremor of pity in his tone), 'because by you the blood of my loyal and true soldiers, my brave officers, has been spilt, and because you have been the means of bringing untold misery and suffering upon my people, whom you have led away by your treason and by your devilries. For that, believe me, unsparing vengeance shall be exacted.'
"The Dumpling, who was livid with passion, turned away, and taking off his cloak (his hat he had placed on a chair when coming in) laid it upon a table.
"As he did so, I saw the handle of a dagger protruding from an inner pocket, and as he turned to face the King again, I whipped it out, and thrusting it under my coat, clapped my left arm lightly against my side, to keep the weapon from slipping down. Then the King turned to me:
"'As for you, sir, I do not know who you may be, and do not greatly care. But that you should be privy to this traitor and villain's devilry, proclaims you villain and traitor too, and I promise that you, as well as he, shall receive short shrift when you come into the hands of justice.'
"'Sir,' I said, falling on one knee and bowing lowly, 'believe me that I am no traitor, and no friend of this man, but your Majesty's loyal and loving subject, who is prepared to defend, with his own life, your Majesty's sacred person.'
"Then I rose and turned to the Dumpling, who was laughing derisively.
"'Very pretty indeed!' he said, slapping me jovially on the back. ''Pon my word, Rissler, I had no idea you were such a born courtier—and actor! It tripped off your tongue as readily as if you had been rehearsing it for weeks, and the way you dropped on your knee, and bowed, couldn't be beaten in the best Court circles—or on the stage. Don't tell me that you didn't all along suspect the surprise I had in store for you. You have been rehearsing that bow and knee-drop before a cheval-glass, I'll wager, and many a time. It does youcredit, anyhow; and whether it was a rehearsed or an unprepared effect, it proves you to be a man of parts, and one who is an acquisition to any cause.
"'But what you have said puts a different complexion upon my plans for your future,' he went on. 'I should like a word with you in the other room before we go any farther. Your Majesty must excuse my friend here and myself if we retire for a few moments.'
"Taking up the cloak and hat from the chair, he put both on and walked towards the door.
"'Have I your permission, Sir, to hear what this man has to say?' I inquired, turning to the King. 'I go or stay, as you may command, and am ready, if need be, as I have said, to prove my loyalty with my life.'
"There is no keener judge of character in all England than the King, and the look which, for a moment, he bent upon me was so searching, so penetrating, so compelling, that I admit I found it hard to face.
"'You keep queer company!' he said with stern bluffness; and something there was, in the way he looked and spoke, which,even in that most eventful moment of my life, recalled past scenes of English history to my memory, and reminded me strangely of more than one of his great ancestors.
"'My company,' I replied gravely, 'is not of my choosing. What has happened to me might have happened to your Majesty's most loyal subject—might conceivably have happened, I venture humbly to suggest, to one who is subject to none in this kingdom. I am here, not by my own consent, but by compulsion. An hour ago I was suddenly taken by surprise, and from behind, by superior numbers, and before I could resist or summon assistance, was forcibly drugged, abducted, and carried senseless to this place. Believe me, Sir, that I am as little deserving of reproach, on the score of the company I keep, as I am unworthy to stand in the august presence in which I now find myself.'
"So saying, I dropped again upon one knee, and bent my head. When I looked up, I saw that the knitting of the brows over the eyes, which had been so sternly bent upon me, was relaxed. By a gesture he bade me to rise, and then, without speaking, nodded to the door, to indicate thatI had his permission to withdraw. Walking backwards, I passed out, to find the Dumpling, who had preceded me, on the other side.
"After closing the door, locking it, and pocketing the key, he took my arm in a friendly way, and led me into another room, lit by a smoky lamp.
"'My dear Rissler,' he began, 'I don't deny that you have disappointed me, but, after all, it is only what I might have expected, and my regard for you is so great that——'
"His hand was feeling, as he spoke, for the dagger which had been in the inside pocket of his cloak. Missing it, he turned suddenly upon me, his eyes blazing with maniacal fury and fire; but before he could lift hand, I struck him squarely, with all my strength, between the eyes, and, as he reeled back, I snatched at the handle of the dagger, and stabbed him to the heart at one stroke."