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Updated: June 26, 2025
"The immediate result," said the Chancellor cruelly, "will doubtless be a putting forward of the date for her marriage." Nikky's hands clenched. "A further result would be your dismissal from the army. One does not do such things as you have done, lightly." "Lightly!" said Nikky Larisch. "God!" "But," continued the Chancellor, "I have a better way. I have faith, for one thing, in your blood.
Some day, when you are older, I'll tell you about it. I has the Princess Hedwig been having tea with you, as usual?" Carelessly spoken as it was, there was a change in Nikky's voice. And the Crown Prince was sensitive to voices. Something similar happened to Monsieur Puaux, the French tutor, when he mentioned Hedwig. "Not yesterday. We went to the fortress. Nikky, what is it to be in love?"
Very careful footsteps. He was quite certain Nikky had followed him. But there were cautious voices, too, and neither was Nikky's. It occurred to Prince Ferdinand William Otto that a good many people, certainly including Miss Braithwaite, would not approve of either his situation or his position. Miss Braithwaite was particularly particular about positions.
To tell the truth, he had been worried about Nikky for some days. Nikky had been his one gleam of cheerfulness in a Palace where all was bustle and excitement and every one seemed uneasy. But Nikky's cheerfulness had been forced lately. His smile never reached his eyes. "I haven't done anything, have I?" he persisted. "Bless you, no!" said Nikky heartily. "I well, I didn't sleep well last night.
As a matter of fact, on the morning of Nikky's return, they took a few minutes to go over the ceremony, Nikky being the delegation. The way they did it was simple. Nikky went out into the corridor, and became the Chamberlain. He stepped inside, bowed, and announced: "The delegation from the city, Highness," standing very stiff, and a trifle bowlegged, as the Chamberlain was.
And now Karl played his trump card, played it with watchful eyes on Nikky's face. He would see if report spoke the truth, if this blue-eyed boy was in love with Hedwig. He was a jealous man, this Karl of the cold eyes, jealous and passionate. Not as a king, then, watching a humble soldier of Livonia, but as man to man, he gazed at Nikky.
It is" she hesitated imperceptibly "the King's dearest wish." Horror froze on Nikky's face. But he bowed. "After what you have told me, I shall ask your cooperation," said Annunciata smoothly. "While there are some of us who deplore the necessity, still it exists. And an alliance with Karnia " "Karnia!" cried Nikky, violating all ceremonial, of course. "But surely !"
But in reality he had palmed it quite neatly, and a little later he pocketed it. Still later, he placed it in his prayer-book. The tea-table became rather noisy. The room echoed with laughter. Even Miss Braithwaite was compelled to wipe her eyes over some of Nikky's sallies, and the Crown Prince was left quite gasping.
And kicked at Nikky's quiet figure as he passed it. Then he unbolted the door, dropped the chain, and opened the door. Standing before him, backed by a great crowd of fantastic figures, was Haeckel. They did not kill him at once. At the points of a dozen bayonets, intended for vastly different work, they forced him up the staircase, flight after flight.
As the road descended into the foothills, there were other tracks in the thin snow, and more than once they roused Nikky's victim to pick out his own tire marks. He obeyed dully. When at last the trail turned from the highway toward the shooting-box at Wedeling, Mettlich fell back with something between a curse and a groan. "The fool!" he muttered. "The young fool! It was madness."
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