Once on a Time, Page 22

  CHAPTER XIX

  UDO BEHAVES LIKE A GENTLEMAN

  "And now," said Coronel, "we'd better decide what to do."

  "But I don't mind what we do now," said Hyacinth happily. "She mayhave the throne and Father and Udo, and--and anything else she canget, and I shan't mind a bit. You see, I have got _you_ now, Coronel,and I can never be jealous of anybody again."

  "That's what makes it so jolly. We can do what we like, and itdoesn't matter if it doesn't come off. So just for fun let's think ofsomething to pay her out."

  "I feel I don't want to hurt anybody to-day."

  "All right, we won't hurt her, we'll humour her. We will be her mosthumble obedient servants. She shall have everything she wants."

  "Including Prince Udo," smiled Hyacinth.

  "That's a splendid idea. We'll make her have Udo. It will annoy yourfather, but one can't please everybody. Oh, I can see myself enjoyingthis."

  They got up and wandered back along Wiggs's path, hand in hand.

  "I'm almost afraid to leave the forest," said Hyacinth, "in casesomething happens."

  "What should happen?"

  "I don't know; but all our life together has been in the forest, andI'm just a little afraid of the world."

  "I will be very close to you always, Hyacinth."

  "Be very close, Coronel," she whispered, and then they walked outtogether.

  If any of the servants at the Palace were surprised to see Coronel,they did not show it. After all, that was their business.

  "Prince Coronel will be staying here," said the Princess. "Prepare aroom for him and some refreshment for us both." And if they discussedthose things in the servants' halls of those days (as why should theynot?), no doubt they told each other that the Princess Hyacinth (blessher pretty face!) had found her man at last. Why, you only had to seeher looking at him. But I get no assistance from Roger at this point;he pretends that he has a mind far above the gossip of the lowerorders.

  "I say," said Coronel, as they went up the grand staircase, "I am nota Prince, you know. Don't say I have deceived you."

  "You are _my_ Prince," said Hyacinth proudly.

  "My dear, I am a king among men to-day, and you are my queen, butthat's in our own special country of two."

  "If you are so particular," said Hyacinth, with a smile, "Father willmake you a proper Prince directly he comes back."

  "Will he? That's what I'm wondering. You see he doesn't know yetabout our little present to the Countess."

  * * * * *

  But it is quite time we got back to Belvane; we have left her alonetoo long. It was more than Udo did. Just now he was with her in hergarden, telling her for the fifth time an extraordinarily dull storyabout an encounter of his with a dragon, apparently in its dotage, towhich Belvane was listening with an interest which surprised even thenarrator.

  "And then," said Udo, "I jumped quickly to the right, and whirlingmy--no, wait a bit, that was later--I jumped quickly to my left--yes,I remember it now, it _was_ my left--I jumped quickly to my left, andwhirling my----"

  He stopped suddenly at the expression on Belvane's face. She waslooking over his shoulder at something behind him.

  "Why, whoever is this?" she said, getting to her feet.

  Before Udo had completely cleared his mind of his dragon, the Princessand Coronel were upon them.

  "Ah, Countess, I thought we should find you together," said Hyacintharchly. "Let me present to you my friend, the Duke Coronel. Coronel,this is Countess Belvane, a very dear and faithful friend of mine.Prince Udo, of course, you know. His Royal Highness and the Countessare--well, it isn't generally known at present, so perhaps I oughtn'tto say anything."

  Coronel made a deep bow to the astonished Belvane.

  _Let me present to you my friend the Duke Coronel_]

  "Your humble servant," he said. "You will, I am sure, forgive me if Isay how glad I am to hear your news. Udo is one of my oldestfriends"--he turned and clapped that bewildered Highness on theback--"aren't you, Udo? and I can think of no one more suitable inevery way." He bowed again, and turned back to the Prince. "Well,Udo, you're looking splendid. A different thing, Countess, from whenI last saw him. Let me see, that must have been just the day beforehe arrived in Euralia. Ah, what a miracle-worker True Love is!"

  I think one of the things which made Belvane so remarkable was thatshe was never afraid of remaining silent when she was not quite surewhat to say. She waited therefore while she considered what all thismeant; who Coronel was, what he was doing there, even whether amarriage with Udo was not after all the best that she could hope fornow.

  Meanwhile Udo, of course, blundered along gaily.

  "We aren't exactly, Princess--I mean----What are you doing here,Coronel?--I didn't know, Princess, that you---- The Countess and Iwere just having a little--I was just telling her what you saidabout--How did you get here, Coronel?"

  "Shall we tell him?" said Coronel, with a smile at Hyacinth.

  Hyacinth nodded.

  "I rode," said Coronel. "It's a secret," he added.

  "But I didn't know that you----"

  "We find that we have really known each other a very long time,"explained Hyacinth.

  "And hearing that there was to be a wedding," added Coronel----

  Belvane made up her mind. Coronel was evidently a very different manfrom Udo. If he stayed in Euralia as adviser--more than adviser sheguessed--to Hyacinth, her own position would not be in much doubt.And as for the King, it might be months before he came back, and whenhe did come would he remember her? But to be Queen of Araby was nomean thing.

  "We didn't want it to be known yet," she said shyly, "but you haveguessed our secret, your Royal Highness." She looked modestly at theground, and, feeling for her reluctant lover's hand, went on, "Udo andI"--here she squeezed the hand, and, finding it was Coronel's, tookUdo's boldly without any more maidenly nonsense--"Udo and I love eachother."

  "Say something, Udo," prompted Coronel.

  "Er--yes," said Udo, very unwillingly, and deciding he would explainit all afterwards. Whatever his feelings for the Countess, he was notgoing to be rushed into a marriage.

  "Oh, I'm so glad," said Hyacinth. "I felt somehow that it must becoming, because you've seen so _much_ of each other lately. Wiggs andI have often talked about it together."

  ("What has happened to the child?" thought Belvane. "She isn't achild at all, she's grown up.")

  "There's no holding Udo once he begins," volunteered Coronel. "He'sthe most desperate lover in Araby.

  "My father will be so excited when he hears," said Hyacinth. "Youknow, of course, that his Majesty comes back to-morrow with all hisarmy."

  She did not swoon or utter a cry. She did not plead the vapours orthe megrims. She took unflinching what must have been the biggestshock in her life.

  "Then perhaps I had better see that everything is ready in thePalace," she said, "if your Royal Highness will excuse me." And witha curtsey she was gone.

  Coronel exchanged a glance with Hyacinth. "I'm enjoying this," heseemed to say.

  "Well," she announced, "I must be going in, too. There'll be much tosee about."

  Coronel was left alone with the most desperate lover in Araby.

  "And now," said the Prince, "tell me what you are doing here."

  Coronel put his arm in Udo's and walked him up and down the flaggedpath.

  "Your approaching marriage," he said, "is the talk of Araby.Naturally I had to come here to see for myself what she was like. Mydear Udo, she's charming; I congratulate you."

  "Don't be a fool, Coronel. I haven't the slightest intention ofmarrying her."

  "Then why have you told everybody that you are going to?"

  "You know quite well I haven't told anybody. There hasn't been asingle word about it mentioned until you pushed your way in just now."

  "Ah, well, perhaps you hadn't heard about it. But the Princess knows,the Countess knows, and I know--yes, I think
you may take our word forit that it's true."

  "I haven't the slightest intention--what do you keep clinging to myarm like this for?

  "My dear Udo, I'm so delighted to see you again. Don't turn your backon old friendships just because you have found a nobler and atruer---- Oh, very well, if you're going to drop all your formerfriends, go on then. But when _I'm_ married, there will always be aplace for----"

  "Understand once and for all," said Udo angrily, "that I am _not_getting married. No, don't take my arm--we can talk quite well likethis."

  "I am sorry, Udo," said Coronel meekly; "we seem to have made amistake. But you must admit we found you in a very compromisingposition."

  "It wasn't in the least compromising," protested Udo indignantly. "Asa matter of fact I was just telling her about that dragon I killed inAraby last year."

  "Ah, and who would listen to a hopeless story like that, but the womanone was going to marry?"

  "Once more, I am not going to marry her."

  "Well, you must please yourself, but you have compromised her severelywith that story. Poor innocent girl. Well, let's forget about it.And now tell me, how do you like Euralia?"

  "I am returning to Araby this afternoon," said Udo stiffly.

  "Well, perhaps you're right. I hope that nothing will happen to youon the way."

  Udo, who was about to enter the Palace, turned round with a startledlook.

  "What do you mean?"

  "Well, something happened on the way here. By the by, how did thathappen? You never told me."

  "Your precious Countess, whom you expect me to marry."

  "How very unkind of her. A nasty person to annoy." He was silent fora moment, and then added thoughtfully, "I suppose it _is_ ratherannoying to think you're going to marry somebody whom you love verymuch, and then find you're not going to."

  Udo evidently hadn't thought of this. He tried to show that he wasnot in the least frightened.

  "She couldn't do anything. It was only by a lucky chance she did itlast time."

  "Yes, but of course the chance might come again. You'd have the thinghanging over you always. She's clever, you know; and I should neverfeel quite safe if she were my enemy. . . . Lovely flowers, aren'tthey? What's the name of this one?"

  Udo dropped undecidedly into a seat. This wanted thinking out. TheCountess--what was wrong with her, after all? And she evidently adoredhim. Of course that was not surprising; the question was, was it fairto disappoint one who had, perhaps, some little grounds for----?After all, he had been no more gallant than was customary from aPrince and a gentleman to a beautiful woman. It was her own fault ifshe had mistaken his intentions. Of course he ought to have leftEuralia long ago. But he had stayed on, and--well, decidedly she wasbeautiful--perhaps he had paid rather too much attention to that. Andhe had certainly neglected the Princess a little. After all, again,why not marry the Countess? It was absurd to suppose there wasanything in Coronel's nonsense, but one never knew. Not that he wasmarrying her out of fear. No; certainly not. It was simply achivalrous whim on his part. The poor woman had misunderstood him,and she should not be disappointed.

  "She seems fond of flowers," said Coronel. "You ought to make thePalace garden look beautiful between you."

  "Now, understand clearly, Coronel, I'm not in the least frightened bythe Countess."

  "My dear Udo, what a speech for a lover! Of course you're not. Afterall, what you bore with such patience and dignity once, you can bearagain."

  "That subject is distasteful to me. I must ask you not to refer toit. If I marry the Countess----"

  "You'll be a very lucky man," put in Coronel. "I happen to know thatthe King of Euralia--however, she's chosen you, it seems. Personally,I can't make out what she sees in you. What is it?"

  "I should have thought it was quite obvious," said Udo with dignity."Well, Coronel, I think perhaps you are right and that it's my duty tomarry her."

  Coronel shook him solemnly by the hand.

  "I congratulate your Royal Highness. I will announce your decision tothe Princess. She will be much amu--much delighted." And he turnedinto the Palace.

  Pity him, you lovers. He had not seen Hyacinth for nearly tenminutes.