CHAPTER XXXI

Otago Witness, Issue 2691, 11 October 1905, Page 62

CHAPTER XXXI

Her Majesty was in the hall, as Jessie had autk-ipiueii. Sli.e was chatting quite gaily with Lady Merehnven as the girl came up. She. flashed Jessie a significcn-b glance. "Your aunt has been pleased to accede to my whim," she said. "And to you are coming with nvi, Vca-a. I imderstand your maic! is sending everything to our hotel. Uood-nieht. Lady Merehaven, aud please do not. "allow th'cpe people to. play cards too lon^-. My dear child, come along.' 7 "It, is a. gVf-at honour for the child," Lady Merehaven murmured. " Goc-d-ndght, niadamo, good-night." The Queen swept Jessie into th© brougham before her Thex-o was a tiny electric lamp behind the Queen's head, so that it shone fill' o-n Jessie's fac* Jossic felt the latter's eyes going all over her. "Now tell me youir story," she said. " Tell mie freely and don't be airaid. I shall be your good friend." "You givo me co-wage to proceed," Jessie murmured. "In the first place I'll toll you why I so dreiaded passing the njght" at Merehaven House. I should certainly have been found out in the morning and* then everything woxild 'have been mined. Not that I cared- for myself, but for the sake of others. Madame, is it possible flia.t you fail to see that I am not Miss Galloway at all?" The Queen fairly gasped with astonish.Hient. Those dark eyes of hers took in Jerpie's identity. It was a long time before she speke again. " You arc quits right," she 6aid slowly and thoughtfully. "I no<tioe_ little subtle differences now you mention it. And yet #o likeness is wonderful. My dear, you aro a lndv."

"I am' a lndy, yes. My father was Colonel Harcourt; in fact, lam a connection of the Merehavens. There has been* nothing vulgor about my adventure tonight." " That I vm, absolutely certain c-P. E tally, the likeness is marvellous. And T have been talking to you and confidiag in you all the evening as if you were my friend Vera Galloway." "Instead of your friend Jessie Harcourt," the. girl said "with! a wistful smile. " BelieWme, I am 1 as devoted to- your interests as is the one whose part I play. I have given proof of it enough to-night. I might havo gone on deceiving you. to the end, but I could not do> it." " I see, I see. You are tolling tha truth ; you are making me love you 1 . And why did you do this for one who a. littJa time! ago* was a perfect stranger to yon? If you know anything c-f our cause "' '' But I do know — and you can command me in any way. Perhaps I had better begin at "the beginning. It was Vera Galloway who took me up. She came t.o me at a moment when I was absolutely desperate. It is strange how th© warp of fate has dragged me into this business 1" "You ennnot tell how deeply I am interested." the Queen said softly. "It is very good of your Majesty. Miss Galloway came to m«. She had heard of ms> evidently. She came to me at tho very moment when I was dismissed from my* situation. I had been accused of a disgraceful flirtation, with the son of one of the shop customers. As a matter of fact the coward bad tried to kiss me, and he let all the blame rest on my shoulders. I wa«> dismissed without any chance of a> further situation ; I had only a few shillings in the world and an invalid 1 sister partially dependent upon me. At that moment I was desperate enough for anything. Quit* early the complication began. The name of the coward who brought all this trouble on me was Prince Boris Mazaroff."

"I am not surprised," the Queen said, with just, a tc-uch of weary scorn in her voice. "We are all creatures of fate. T know that I a.m. But the coincidence is a little strange.."

" Miss Galloway wrote me a letter and aiked: me to call upon her in my working! rtre&». When) I saw her I could not buti he struck by the amazing likeness between us. Then she unfolded her plan— « thie plan that we were to change places for a little time. Someone whom she cared for was in trouble and ifc was impossible that she should get a>way without being suspected. Your' Majesty may guess thaO the- somebody in trouble was no qther than Mi Charles ' Maxwell, and at the bottom of the trouble was the missing papers relating to Asturia." Tho Quean nodded, her dart eyes gleamiii the light of the lamp. " I see," she exclaimed. " Those papers that found their way into the hands of the Countess Saens. T*he papers that she was robbed of almost as soos.. as she had ob«

tamed. possession of them. What an amazingly daring thing to do. I seem tot see it quite clearly now. Miss Galloway clipped off and stole them while all thetime her friends and relations tfiought •ifcat she was in the house of her uncle! All. what will not a woman do for the sake of the man she loves ! And she was quite successful !" "Quite. We know that by the scene iiiade by the Countess's maid at Merehaven House. I did not guess until the maid looked at me and said that I was the thief. Of course, everybody who heard it laughed, J-iut the woman stuck to her story. The statement was a' flood of light to me. When I heard it I knew then exactly what had happened as well as if I had been present and seen the robbery." "Vera Galloway saved Asturia and her lover at the game time," the Queen said. "But why did not Miss Galloway come back and resume her proper place?" "Oh, tnat is the unfortunate part of it," Jessie said sadly. "She was so overcome with her good fortune that she walked down Piccadilly in a dazed state. Then she was run over by a cab and taken to Charing Cross Hospital. She is there at this moment." A cry of passionate anger broke from the Queen. Her hands were clasped together closely. "Of all -the misfortunes !" she gasped. "Will nothing ever come right here? Go on and tell me the worst." "The worst is that Vera lost the papers," Jessie resumed. , "When the news of the accident came to me, I slipped out and ■with, great risk went to the hospital. Dr -Varney gave me a permit. Vera had lost the papers ; she had not the least idea what had.become of them. But that is not all. Countess Saens found out " that a girl answering to my description had been taken to the hospital, and she went there. Fortunately, she was refused admission. But she will get this im the morning, and that is why I want to go out so early. The suspicions of the Countess are aroused ; she begins to understand.And there is Prince Mazaroff." "What can he possibly have to do with it?" the Queen asked. "Your Majesty is forgetting that Prince Mazaroff knows' both Vera and Jessie Harcourt;, the shop girl, whom he honoiired with his hated attentions. He knows that there is- a girl in London identical in looks to Miss Galloway ; he heard what Countess Saens's maid said. Indeed, he went— so far to-night to hint to Lord Merehaven that a trick was being played upon- her ladyship. There is only on© thing, that prevented his .discovery outright.'.' - ' "And what was that?" the Queen asked. "Why should he hesitate?" "Because he was not " absolutely sure oi his ground," Jessie said. "He knew the shop 1 girl, / Jessie Harcourt. 'But he was puzzled^ because he did not imagine that ,a shop -girl would.be so wonderfully at " ease - in " good society and have all the manners of it at her fingers' ends. He, did not know that the Bond street girl was of gentle birth, and he was puzzled. Do you "see my point?" The Queen saw the point perfectly well, and admitted 'that it was a very clever one."I am more than glad that you have told me all this," x she said, in a thrilling voice. , "Your frankness may save the situation in the long run. One thing is certain, we 'must get Vera out of the hospital and back again here without delay. And for the time being you must disappear. ° I seeni to have as many enemies here a 6 I have in Asturia, only they are cleverer ones. These people are all in the pay of B,ussia. Countess^. Saens must be baffled at any cost. Wait a moment." I The carriage had pulled up, but the footman did not dismount from the box. So far as Jessie conld judge, the carriage iba-d stopped nowhere near the Queen of Asturia's headquarters. She smiled as j Jessie looked up with a questioning eye. "You are wondering why, we are here," ehe said. "It is imperative before 1 sleep to-night that I should have a few I words with General Maxgregor. I under- I stand that he has a suite of rooms in j the big block' of flats. I fancy those are j his windows on the second floor, those 1 with, the lights up. Somebody has just come in and looked out of the window. My child, who is that?" i'he Queen's voice changed suddenly ; ler tones were harsh' and rasping. A man in evening- dress stood in one of the lighted windows looking out. "You saw what happened at Lady Merehaven's," the Queen went on. "We left the King there with the faithful Alexis behind his chair. We have come direct here. , The whole thing is maddening. Who do you reckon that man to be who vrufi iooking out of the window?" Jessie looked up with bewildered eyes. The old dreamy feeling was coming over her again s She gazed steadily at the j figure framed 1 in the flood of light. j "There is no mistake about it,"_ she gasped. "That is his Majesty the King .of Asturia!"