By Right of Sword Read online

  CHAPTER V.

  GETTING DEEPER.

  The news that I had beaten Devinsky, had played with him like a catwith a bird, spread like a forest fire. Essaieff was right enough inhis forecast that everyone would be delighted at the major's overthrow.But the notoriety which the achievement brought me was not at allunlikely to prove a source of embarrassment.

  I should be a marked man, and everything I did would be sure to beclosely observed. Any gross blunder made in my new character would bethe more certainly seen, and would thus be all the more likely to leadto my discovery.

  There were of course a thousand things I ought to know; hundreds ofacts that I had no doubt been in the habit of doing regularly--and thusany number of pitfalls lay gaping right under my feet.

  My difficulties began at once with my regimental duties. I did notknow even my brother officers by sight, to say nothing of the men. Thefact that the real Alexis had not been very long with the regimentwould of course help me somewhat in regard to this; as it was quiteconceivable that having been very indifferent to my duties and anythingbut a zealous officer, I might not have got to know the men. But I wasjust as ignorant of the regimental routine which ought to be a matterof course. I had questioned Olga on every detail and drawn from herall that she knew--and she was surprisingly quickwitted and wellinformed on the subject--and I had of course my own limited militaryexperience to back me; but I lacked completely that familiarity whichonly actual practice could give. This difficulty gave me much thoughtand I am bound to say amused me immensely. The way out that I chosewas a mixture of impudence and eccentricity; and I relied on thereputation I had suddenly made for myself as a swordsman beingsufficient to silence criticism.

  I went back to my rooms, and while there a manservant whom Essaieff hadpromised to send to me, arrived. I would not have one from the ranks,but chose a civilian that had been a soldier; and under the guise ofquestioning his present knowledge of military matters, dress, etc., Idrew out of him particulars of the uniforms I ought to wear ondifferent occasions, the places and times of all regimental duties,and--what was of even more importance--a rough idea of the actualduties which fell to the share of Lieutenant Alexis Petrovitch.

  That was enough for me. I dressed and went to head-quarters, resolvedto see the Colonel, and on the plea of indisposition ask to be excusedfrom duty on that and the following day. To my surprise--for I hadheard from Olga that I stood very low down in Colonel Kapriste'sestimation--I was received with especial cordiality and favour. Hisgreeting was indeed effusive. He granted my request at once, said Icould take a week if I liked, after my hard work, and declared that Imust take great care of myself for the sake of the regiment. Then hepressed me to wait until he had finished his regimental work as hewished to talk to me.

  What he wanted was an account of the duel, and a very few minutesshewed me that if he was no friend of mine, he was a strong enemy ofthe man I had fought. He questioned me also as to the change in myappearance, why I had shaved my beard and moustache, what excuse I hadto give for having been out without my uniform on the previous day; andmy blunt reply that I had had an accident and hoped I was master of myown features, and that if my uniform was burnt it was more becoming foran officer to be in mufti than naked, drew from him nothing more thanthe significant retort that he hoped I had changed as much in otherrespects. Then he turned curious to know where I had learnt to use thesword, and who was the fencing master that had taught me; and I turnedthe point with a laugh--that Major Devinsky's evil genie conferred thegift on me, as they were not ready yet below to take charge of themajor's soul.

  He was so delighted with my success over the man whom he evidentlyhated, that he let my impertinence pass; but I could see that the twoaides who were present, were as much astonished at my conduct as at theColonel's reception of it.

  But it was of great service to me. It emphasized the complete changein me; and I left with a feeling of intense satisfaction that thedifficulties of the position were proving much less formidable whenfaced than they had seemed in anticipation.

  I went next to the exercise ground and watched with the closestscrutiny everything that took place. Now and again one or other of theofficers came up to me; and to all alike I adopted an attitude of coldand stolid impassiveness. This was my safe course. I knew that Alexishad hitherto been unpopular with the whole regiment, except perhaps oneor two of the worst and wildest fellows; and I judged that anyapproaches made now were rather out of deference to the dangerous skillI had suddenly developed than to any old familiarity. In most cases Icould therefore quite safely appear to resent old neglect and sorepulse any present advances.

  "You're not at drill, this morning, Petrovitch," said one.

  I gave him a stony, stolid stare.

  "On the contrary, I am here," I answered, turning away.

  "I mean, you're not drilling," he said, with a feeble laugh.

  "I have already been out this morning," I returned giving him anothermost unpleasant look. "Do you mean that you want to drill with me?" Istared him out of countenance until the feeble laugh which he repeatedhad passed from his face, and with a muttered excuse he went back tohis men.

  This sort of thing with variations in my hard unpleasantness happenedseveral times while I remained on the ground; and before I left I hadmanaged to stamp the impression pretty clearly on my fellow-officersgenerally, that it would be best not to interfere with me. This wasjust what I wished.

  At the club, where I went after leaving the exercise ground, there wereseveral of the men whom I had so insulted on the previous night. I wasin truth rather sorry that I had made such a cad of myself; since thatwas not the sort of character I saw now I could construct out of thecomposite materials of the two very different careers and persons thatwere now to be blended.

  My reputation was made already and I found everywhere some evidences ofthe advantages it carried. More than one of those who on the nightbefore had been most profuse in their expressions of contempt for mewere now obviously very ill at ease; and some of them wereunquestionably expecting me to take a strong course. But I spoke to noone; and merely returned a curt and formal acknowledgment of anygreetings made to me.

  After a time Lieutenant Essaieff came in, and I noticed not withoutsatisfaction that as soon as he saw I was in the place he came acrossto me.

  "I hear you have made a remarkable conversion, Petrovitch."

  "Yes?"

  "Old Saltpetre, I mean. Cruladoff told me and said he could scarcelybelieve his own eyes and ears when you and that old martinet werechumming together like a couple of young subs. He swears that a manhas been cashiered before now for saying a good deal less than yousaid." I saw he was referring to the Chief, so I made a shot.

  "It's not much of a secret what he thinks of Devinsky."

  "Do you really know the story, then? Why, you told me last week thatyou didn't."

  "I didn't know a good deal then that I know now," I returned drily.

  "Neither did we," he answered significantly. "Any way the old boyswears by you now; and after you'd left this morning went on in a finestrain to the two aides, praising you sky high. By Gad, if the warreally comes you'll be in luck, and get every bit of daredevil work theold Salamander can thrust your way. Hullo, Cruladoff!" he broke off asone of the men I had seen that morning with the Chief came up. "I wasjust telling Petrovitch what you told me."

  Some others joined us then, and though I held myself in the strongestreserve, I exchanged a few words with one or two. What was of greatimportance, moreover, I learnt to know a number of my comrades by sightand name.

  My actions were all carefully studied. I spoke very little indeed;never dropped a word that had even a suggestion of boastfulness in it,and only answered when any man chose to address me. I knew from whatOlga had told me that I was with some of the best men in theregiment--those who hitherto had held me in the poorest esteem--and Iwas scrupulously careful that in my outward demeanour there should nowbe nothi
ng whatever to cause offence. I would allow no man tointerfere with or even criticise me--but on my side I would interferewith none. The eccentricity that was to cover my ignorance should bedefensive armour only.

  In this manner I carried myself through the difficulties of that day;and it was indeed easy enough. I found most of my comrades only tooready to be civil rather than suspicious; and the extraordinary successof the morning set them on the look out for further eccentricities andpeculiarities. A man who could successfully conceal the possession ofsuch extraordinary skill with sword and pistol, might be expected tohave any number of surprises in store; and no one was in any hurry toask the reason for the concealment.

  The fame of my achievement affected even the men who came to have theirdebts paid that afternoon and evening; and the money lender--a scurvywretch of the lowest type--was so frightened and trembled so violentlywhen I asked him how he dared to send me threatening letters, that hecould scarcely sign his receipt. The whole of them were certainlyprofoundly astonished at getting their money; and probably I should nothave paid a kopeck, but for a change in my intentions that had begun toaffect me.

  I liked the promise of the new life for which I had exchanged my oldand empty career; and I had begun to consider whether, instead ofleaving when my passport came, I should not remain where I was andcontinue to be Lieutenant Alexis Petrovitch of the Moscow InfantryRegiment.

  I had already done much to earn a title to the position. I had savedthe real man's body by helping him over the frontier; I had saved hishonour by fighting his duel for him; I had made his sister pretty safefrom further molestation at Devinsky's hands; I had created quite a newAlexis Petrovitch in the regiment; and now I had paid the beggar'sdebts.

  Obviously I could play the part a good deal better than he could, andtherefore--why not continue to play it? There was plenty of danger init. Siberia at least, if it was discovered that I had been personatinga Russian officer and fighting duels in his name. But I cared nothingfor that. If it threatened me, it had its compensations; since it madeit quite impossible for the real Alexis ever to return and claim hisposition, even if he wished.

  I had intended to fight for Russia in any event, supposing the warcame; and if I fell in some battle it would not matter in the least howmy grave was ticketed. It might save me no end of trouble, moreover,if I took the good the gods gave me without bothering any more aboutvolunteering.

  The more I thought of it as I sat and smoked by myself, the firmerbecame my resolve just to float with the stream and remain what I was,till chance discovered me, if ever it did.

  I had probably got over the worst danger by my impudence, my knack offighting, and the extraordinary resemblance to my other self; andalready I could see my way through many of the difficulties, so far asthe regiment was concerned.

  Moreover, I am bound to admit I liked the part. I had never had such achance before; and if all the truth must be told, my vanity was notaltogether proof against the sensation I was creating. I had had sucha run of bad luck for the past few years, that a change was welcome.

  By the time my reverie was finished, therefore, I had more than halfresolved to be Hamylton Tregethner no more. Then it was time to dressfor the ball at the Zemliczka Palace; and I was snob enough--I can callit nothing but sheer snobbery--so to time my entrance into the rooms asto cause as much sensation as possible. Though outwardly calm andquite impassive, I am positively ashamed to say I enjoyed the ripple ofcomment which I saw pass from lip to lip, and the evident interestwhich I awakened.

  At the same time matters were within an ace of being very awkward. Anynumber of people came forward to speak to me, all of whom manifestlyexpected I should know them both by name and by sight. I had onegreeting for all: cold, impassive, uninterested, though there were anumber of very handsome women with whom I should have been glad tochat, if I could have done so safely. But I dared not.

  Indeed the women worried me more than enough. The men I could staveoff and keep at a distance easily; for in truth they all seemed shy offorcing themselves on me;--but the women wanted to compel me to takenotice of them and were not to be put off by any excuse or shift. Howmany I ought to have known; with how many I had had flirtations, I ofcourse had not the remotest idea. I was thus very glad when a chanceof escape came with the entrance of Olga, who arrived with her aunt.The latter was rather a good looking woman, I thought; and I got awayfrom the other people on the plea of having to go and speak to the two.

  "Well, aunt, what do you think...."

  "Aunt?" exclaimed Olga's companion, looking at me with unmistakableanger.

  My sister flashed a quick danger signal at me. I had blundered badly.

  "Alexis, your joke is very ill-timed," she said, severely. "You shouldknow the Countess Krapotine better than to suppose that yourbarrack-yard jibes would be welcome."

  "I hope the Countess Krapotine knows there is no one in all Moscowwhose good will I prize more highly and would lose more unwillinglythan hers. It was a silly jest: and was prompted only by a desire toclaim even a passing relationship with one whom Moscow delights tohonour. Her kindness to you, Olga, makes her kin to me."

  "You are always a little hard on your brother, Olga," said theCountess, whom I had mistaken for an aunt many years older andinfinitely ugly. But the matter passed, and as I did not care to stopand talk with them for too long, I left them after arranging whichdances I was to sit out with my sister.

  I did not dance with anyone: but contented myself with lounging aboutobserving what was going on. I had more than one little adventure: butone in particular impressed me. I was leaning against the wall near anarchway between two of the ball rooms when I noticed an exceedinglyhandsome woman making eyes and signs secretly to some one near me. Shewas a remarkably striking woman, tall, dark, handsome, and passionatelooking; and after a minute I glanced round about me to see who thefortunate man might be. Just then there was no man at all near me: andlooking furtively at her, I noticed that the signs ceased when I wasapparently not observing her.

  I looked at her openly and they recommenced immediately. It seemedtherefore that they were meant for me. I tested this, until there wasno room for doubt: and I looked at her with a little more interest,speculating who she might be, and what she was to me. But I made nosign that I knew her; as of course I did not; and after a minute or twoI moved away, as it was time for me to go to Olga.

  There was just then a little difficulty in getting through the roomsowing to the crush of people, and presently to my intense surprise avery angry voice whispered close in my ear:--

  "Beware!"

  I turned at once and found it was the handsome woman who had beensignalling to me. The crowd had brought us close together, and she wasstaring hard at me, her face expressive of both agitation and illtemper. I was amused and without relaxing my features bowed as Imuttered:

  "I will."

  This answer seemed to increase her anger, but at that instant anothermovement of the throng separated us, and I went away to find Olga.

  We sat and chatted and laughed together--especially at my mistake withthe countess--and presently glancing up I saw opposite to us the womanwho had acted the little bit of melodrama with me. She was eyeing usboth now angrily.

  "Who's that?" I asked, pointing her out to my sister. The girl shookher head gravely.

  "I wish you didn't know, Alexis."

  "Oh, do I know? I've put my foot in it then, I expect;" and I told herwhat had happened. She smiled, and then shook her head again, moregravely than before.

  "All Moscow knows that you and Madame Paula Tueski are thick friends;and you ought to know that you have set many scandalous tongueswagging."

  "Well, she's a very handsome woman," said I, glancing across at her.

  "Your favourite style of beauty was always somewhat masculine andfleshly," said Olga in a very sisterly and very severe tone.

  "Yes, I'm afraid I've not always admired those things I ought to haveadmired."

/>   "Say, rather, you have often admired those things which you ought not._Com_mission, not _o_mission."

  "Well, I've a new commission now, and you gave it me," said I, playingon her word and looking closely at her. I took rather a pleasure inwatching the colour ebb and flow in her bright expressive face.

  She looked up now, very steadily, right into my eyes, as if to read mythoughts; and then looked down again and was silent. And in some waythe look made me sorry I had jested. After a pause she said in herusual direct way:--

  "We are wasting time. There is so much I must yet tell you, and someof it is very disagreeable. You and I have quarrelled more than onceabout that woman, Paula Tueski. You wished me to know her, and I wouldnot; I wished you to give her up, and you would not."

  "I'll do it at once," I said, readily. "I shall not feel the pang----"

  "Do, please, be serious," she interrupted in her turn, with a littlefoot tap of impatience, while a frown struggled with a smile for themastery in her expression. The smile had the best of it at first, butthe frown won in the end. "Paula Tueski, you have often told me, is adangerous woman. As wife of the Chief of the Secret Police she hasconsiderable power and influence; though to be candid I never couldtell whether you said this as an excuse for continuing your friendshipwith her, or because you were really afraid of her. You are not verybrave, Alexis, you know."

  "No, I'm afraid I'm not," I admitted. "But at any rate I won't try toforce her on you for the future. I think I can promise that."

  "She's an exceedingly ambitious woman, and means you no good, Alexis,"said Olga, very energetically. "If you can give her up safely I hopeyou will." She was very earnest about this, and I was going toquestion her more closely when someone came up to claim her for a dance.

  Very soon after this I left, taking care to keep out of the way of thewoman who seemed so anxious that I should speak to her. I rememberedthe "P.T." of the diary and of the correspondence; and I saw that theremight easily be some ugly complications unless I was very careful.

  I walked home to my rooms and was very thoughtful on the way. Thislegacy of old sweethearts was the most unpleasant feature of my newinheritance as well as possibly the most dangerous. It was just thekind of knot, too, that a sword could not cut; and before the nightclosed, I had a very jarring reminder of this.