The name signed was that of a well-known military attache at the
Embassy in London. I tossed back the cablegram.
"Well?" triumphantly.
"No, it is not well; it is all very bad, and particularly for you.
Your London informant is decidedly off the track. The man you are
looking for is in Vienna."
"I do not believe you! It is a trick."
"Yes, it is a trick, and I am taking it, and you have lost a point, to
say nothing of the time and labor and a black eye. If you had asked
all these questions yesterday I should have told you that Mr.
Hillars----"
"Yes, that's the name!" he interrupted.
"I should have told you that he is no longer the London representative
of my paper. It is true that the description of Hillars and myself
tallies somewhat, only my hair is dark, while his is light, what there
is left of it, and he is a handsomer man than I. All this I should
have told you with pleasure, and you would have been saved no end of
trouble. I presume that there is nothing left for you to do but to
carry me back to the city. To quell any further doubt, here are my
passports, and if these are not satisfactory, why take me before Prince
O----, your Chancellor."
He was irresolute, and half inclined to believe me.
"I do not know what to do. You know, then, the gentleman I am seeking?"
"Yes."
"Would he enter this country under an assumed name?"
"No. He is a man who loves excitement. Whatever he does is done
openly. Had it been he instead of me, he would have thrown you out of
the carriage at the first sign on your part that you were watching him.
He is a very strong man."
"If he is stronger than you, I am half glad that I got the wrong man.
You strike a pretty hard blow. But, whether you are the man I want, or
not, you will have to remain till this afternoon, when the Count will
put in appearance. I daresay it is possible that I have made a
mistake. But I could not do otherwise in face of my instructions."
"The Princess seems to me more trouble than she is worth."
"It is possible that you have never seen her Highness," he said,
hinting a smile. "She is worth all the trouble in the world."