The Princess Passes Volume 56 by Alice Muriel Williamson, Charles Norris Williamson (great book club books .txt) 📕

Ten. You Can Rest Till Nine O'clock."

"Thank You. And Now, Good Night. You've Been Very Kind To-Day. Maybe I

Didn't Seem Grateful, But I Was, All The Same; Very, Very Grateful."

"Nonsense!" Said I. "If You're Too Tired To Go Down, Shan't I Have My

Dinner With You? We Could Have A Table Drawn Up Before The Fire, And

It Would Be Quite Jolly."

He Shook His Head, A Great Weariness In His Eyes. "I'm Too Done Up For

Society, Even Yours. I'd Rather You Went Down. You Will, Won't You?"

"Certainly, If You Won't Have Me. Rest Well. I Shall See That They

Send You Up Something Decent."

"It Doesn't Matter. I'm Not As Hungry As I Was, Somehow. Good Night,

Man."

"Good Night, Boy."

"Shake Hands, Will You?"

He Pressed Mine With All His Little Force, And Shook It Again And

Again, Looking Up In My Face. Then He Bade Me "Good Night" Once More,

Abruptly, And Retreated Into His Room.

I Went To My Quarters At The Other End Of The Passage, And Was Glad Of

The Fire Which Had Begun To Roar Fiercely In A Small Round Stove, Like

A Gnome With A Pipe Growing Out Of His Head. I Had A Sponge, Changed,

And Descended To The Salon, Only To Learn That The Eating Arrangements

Were Carried On In Another Building, At Some Distance From The Hotel.

Feeling Like A Belated Insect Of Summer Overtaken By Winter Cold, I

Darted Down The Path Indicated, To The Restaurant, Where I Found The

Americans, Already Seated At Just Such A Long Table As I Had Pictured,

And Still In Their Knickerbockers. There Was, In The Big Room, A

Sprinkling Of Little Tables Under The Closed Windows, But They Were

Not Laid For A Meal; And A Chair Being Pulled Out For Me By A Waiter,

Exactly Opposite My Two Fellow-Guests, I Took It And Sat Down.

My First Thought Was To Order Something For The Little Pal, And To

Secure A Promise That It Should Reach Him Hot, And Soon. I Then

Devoted Myself To My Own Dinner, Which Would Have Been More Enjoyable

Had I Had The Boy's Companionship. I Had Worked Slowly Through Soup

And Fish, And Arrived At The Inevitable Veal, When I Was Addressed By

One Of The Americans--Him Of The Cleft Chin And Light Curly Hair,

Whose Voice I Had Heard First In The Salon.

"You Came Up By The Mule Path, Didn't You?"

I Answered Civilly In The Affirmative, Aware That All My "Points" Were

Being Noted By Both Men.

"Must Have Been A Stiff Journey In This Weather."

"We Came Into The Mist And Snow Just Below The Col."

"Your Friend Is Done Up, Isn't He?"

"Oh, He's A Very Plucky Young Chap," I Replied, Careful For The Boy's

Reputation As A Pilgrim; "But He's A Bit Fagged, And Will Be Better

Off Dining In His Own Room."

"I Expect He'll Be All Right To-Morrow. Are You Going To Try And Get

To Chambéry, Or Will You Return To Aix By Train?"

"We Shall Push On, Unless We're Snowed In," I Said.

"That's Our Plan, Too. I Dare Say We Shall Be Starting About The Same

Time, And If So, If You Don't Mind, We Might Join Forces."

"Now, What Is This Chap's Game?" I Asked Myself. "He Isn't Drawing Me

Out For Nothing; And As These Two Are Together They Have No Need Of

Companionship. There's Some Special Reason Why They Want To Join Us."

Taking This For Granted, The One Reason Which Occurred To Me As

Probable, Was A Previous Acquaintance With The Boy, Which They Wished

To Keep Up, And He Did Not Wish To Acknowledge. I Determined That He

Should Not Be Thus Entrapped, Through Me.

"That Would Be Very Pleasant, No Doubt," I Replied; "But You Had

Better Not Wait For Us. Our Time Of Starting Is Uncertain."

Though I Spoke With Perfect Civility, It Must Have Been Clear To Them

That I Preferred Not To Have My Party Enlarged By Strangers, And I

Rather Regretted The Necessity For This Ungraciousness, As The Men

Were Gentlemen, And I Usually Got On Excellently With Americans.

"Oh, Very Well," Returned The Handsomer Of The Two, Looking Slightly

Offended. "We Shall Meet On The Way Down, Perhaps. By-The-By, If I'm

Not Mistaken, Your Young Friend Is A Compatriot Of Ours. He's

American, Isn't He?"

"Yes."

"I Believe I've Met Him In New York, Though It Was So Dark I Couldn't

Be Sure. Do You Object To Telling Me His Name?"

"I'm Afraid I Do Object," I Answered, Stiffly This Time. "You Must

Satisfy Yourself As To His Identity, If It Interests You, When You See

Each Other To-Morrow."

Of All That Remained Of Dinner, I Can Only Say The Words Which Hamlet

Spoke In Dying; For Indeed, "The Rest Was Silence."

Directly The Meal Was Over, I Hurried Back To The Hotel, Like A Rabbit

To Its Warren; Smoked A Pipe Before A Roaring Fire In My Bedroom, And

Wondered If The Little Pal Were Wandering "Down The Uncompanioned Way"

Of Dreamland. As For Me, I Never Got As Far As That Land. I Fell Over

A Precipice Without A Bottom, Before My Head Had Found A Nest In The

Soft Pillow, And Knew Nothing More Until Suddenly I Started Awake

With The Impression That Someone Had Called.

"What Is It, Boy? Do You Want Me?" I Heard Myself Asking Sharply, As

My Eyes Opened.

It Seemed That I Had Not Been Asleep For Ten Minutes, But To My

Surprise An Exquisite, Rosy Light Filled The Room. Well-Nigh Before I

Knew Whether I Were Sleeping Or Waking, I Was Out Of Bed And At The

Window.

It Was The Light Of Sunrise, Shining Over A Billowy White World, For

The Fog Had Been Rent Asunder, And Through Its Torn, Woolly Folds, I

Caught An Unforgettable Glimpse Of Glory. The Sky Was A Rippling Lake

Of Red-Gold Fire, Whose Reflection Turned A Hundred Snow-Clad

Mountain-Crests To Blazing Helmets For Titans. Above The Majestic

Ranks Rose Their Leader, Towering Head And Shoulders Over All. "Mont

Blanc!" I Had Just Time To Say To Myself In Awed Admiration, When The

Snow-Fog Was Knit Together Again, Only A Jagged Line Of Fading Gold

Showing The Stitches.

Nobody Had Called Me; I Knew That, Now, Yet I Had An Uneasy Impression

That Someone Wanted Me Somewhere, And That Something Was Wrong. It Was

Stupid To Let This Worry Me, I Told Myself, However; And Having

Lingered A Few Moments At The Window Studying The Lovely Pattern Of

Frost-Work Lace On The Glass, And The Fringe Of Priceless Pearls On

Branch Of Bush, And Stunted Tree, I Went Back To Bed. There, I Pulled

My Watch Out From Under My Pillow, And Looked At It. "Only Six

O'clock," I Yawned. "Three Good Hours More Of Sleep. I Wonder If The

Boy----" Then I Tumbled Over Another Pleasant Precipice.

When I Waked Again, It Was Almost Nine, And Nerving Myself To The

Inevitable, I Rang For A Cold Bath. The Morning Was Bitterly Chill,

But The Tingling Water Soon Sent The Blood Racing Through My Veins,

And By Ten O'clock I Was Knocking At The Boy's Door. No Answer Came,

And Thinking That He Must Already Be Down, I Was On My Way Across The

White, Frozen Grass To The Restaurant, When I Met The Muleteer Coming

Up With Finois.

"Hallo, Joseph!" I Exclaimed In Surprise. "Where Are Fanny And

Souris?"

"Innocentina Has Taken Them, Monsieur," He Answered.

"What--They Have Started?"

"But Yes, Monsieur, And Very Early."

"Tell Me What Happened," I Prompted Him.

"Why, Monsieur, It Was This Way. There Was Not Much Sleep For Me Last

Night, If You Will Pardon My Liberty In Mentioning Such Matters,

Because Of The Little Animal Which Bites And Jumps Away. I Know Not

What You Call Him In Your Language, Though I Think He Is Known In All

Lands. Besides, The Beasts Were Noisy In The Stable Underneath The

Room Where I Lay With The Men. About Half-Past Four The Others Got Up,

But I Lay Still, As It Was Well With My Animals, And There Was No

Hurry. But A Little More Than An Hour Later, They Called Me From

Below, Laughing, And Saying There Was A Lady To See Me. I Had Not

Undressed, Monsieur, For Many Reasons, And Now I Was Glad, For I Knew

Who It Must Be, Though Not Why She Should Be There, And So Early Too.

I Could Not Bear That She Should Be Alone With These Rough Fellows,

And In Two Minutes I Had Tumbled Down The Ladder.

"I Had Not Been Mistaken, Monsieur. It Was Innocentina. She Said Her

Master Had Sent Her Down To Fetch The _Ânes_, As He Was Obliged By

Certain Circumstances To Start On In Advance Of My Master. I Did Not

Ask Her Any Questions, But I Helped Her Get Ready The Donkeys, And I

Would Have Walked Up With Her To The Hotel, Had She Permitted It. If I

Did So, She Said, The Cattle Men Would Talk; So I Stayed Behind."

"Well, I Suppose We Shall Overtake Them," I Replied, Hiding Surprise,

As I Did Not Care To Let Joseph See That I Had Been Left In The Dark

Concerning This Strange Change Of Programme. My Mind Groped For An

Explanation Of The Mystery, And Then Suddenly Seized Upon One. The

Boy, Who Had Evidently Met His Two Compatriots In Other Days And

Another Land, Disliked And Wished To Shun Them. He Had Feared That

They Might Be Our Companions Down To Chambéry, And Had Taken Drastic

Measures To Avoid Their Society. Rather Than Get Me Up Early, For His

Convenience, After A Day Of Some Hardship And Fatigue, The Plucky

Little Chap Had Gone Off Without Us. Possibly I Should Find That He

Had Left A Note For Me, With Some Waiter Or _Femme De Chambre_. If

Not, Our Route Down To Chambéry And The Hotel At Which We Were To Stay

There, Had Already Been Decided Upon. He Would Have Said To Himself

That There Could Be No Mistake, And That He Might Trust Me To Find Him

At Our Destination.

The Americans Were Not At Breakfast, But Later, As Joseph, Finois, And

I Were Starting, I Saw Them Standing At A Distance In The Corridor.

The Porter, Who Had Brought Down The Miserable Hold-Alls, And Was

Waiting For His Tip, Murmured That "_Ces Messieurs_" Were Not