ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
%
NIKKY FINDS HIMSELF IN A
-
SERIOUS PREDICAMENT AS
ten years old, taken to the opera b
slips away to the park, where he
Thorpe, a little American boy. Re
finds everything in ar
made for him. The sna night
boy's grandfather, the old king,
gests that to preserve
the terrorists to form a
kingdom of Karnia be secured by
riage to King Karl of that country
Annunciata, Hedwig's
his
id de cam
me
wl
the Kingdon
republi 3
Princess
prevent
Ni i Otto's a
for her
Karl.
dummy
up Karl's
tion, holds
makes lobby
turning to the palace at night, he
the acquaintance of
hancellor calls to cogsult the
ill. The chancellor sug-
is threatened by plots of
the neighboring
10 {8 very
he friendship of
18
lady-in-walting
with Karl
Hedwig, loves
«nn told of the plans
nessage to King
and a
Countess Loschek,
in
King
who
mother, is In love
i yr 4
to Hedwl
terrorists
of the substitu-.
y elope.
CHAPTER VIi—Costinued.
crm En
opened
t Cero
eremons
CHAPT
E
n
Nikky Does a Reckless Thing.
en having an
] garments
I his own
and rolling his tiny
on tine from
fashion,
the
cold, ny
¥; “but 1 ama
told me the
is
ore"
tens it
Kituliy
said
and
will
res
he
soul,
mi have
much
1
this
56) as to
tomorre
the truth.
of urge”
think you has
should have chosen the
fl pris gentle
Nikky
¢ made an
ate
in
lane, in
uffeur
In his
He
self
Before
he consulted hi
. True,
night gave him
t
the long early =
four more hou
But the messenger was due
g lodge in the
destination
hi
O CIOCK. i
r
4 O
4t, late by an
nessenger had told him
This
to t
ng.
ung his hope of success
he should go
box at Wedell and
the house itself, but
eeper’s Here he
his and tap at
its being opened, he was
letter
the After
take the machine away
some sixty miles farther
ly. that he
sho iting
not to
lodge
machine,
but to give the
pened door.
then, was to the king
as all the world,
with kindred
at Wedeling, shooting.
the messenger told
intended to find out.
if not rough.
1st the lights of the lodge
that Karl, KOE
was
if
ikky fle
2 th
hen at Is
the Zi
igh the trees, it half-past
three, and a wet spring snow was fall-
ing 4 In an open place NIKKY
looked up. The stars were gone,
The lodge now, and the gate keep-
Nikky's heart hammered
he left the ecar-—hammered with
nervousness, not terror. But he went
boldly to the door, and knocked,
far all well, There
footsteps within, and a mat
out into the darkness, closing the door
was
softly.
er's house,
ns
NO was were
behind him,
“You have the letter?’ he asked,
“It is here”
“1 will take 10."
Nikky held it out,
' bled for it. took It.
“Orders have
The man fum-
come,” rald the volee,
In the morning you are to carry dis-
Poor Nikky! With his car facl
toward the lodge, and under necess
the highway! He
There was no cha
thought quick
nce of overpowerl
And tl
empty. From beyond
the sounds
thud of drinking mugs
or
2
1
House was not
the door en of men's
me
and the
a bare table,
“You will take to the house,
me up
Nikky
to
It was
If only
breathed agaln. BO
after all ti
bo Cnsy, tiie
14}
the rest
prayed that he
to betray hls
“Very
His
was
make no false turning,
ignor
he
ompanion
ance,
sald,
well,
“His Majesty Desires That
senger Come In"
nll
low,
his ear down t again, and
*ht might
we road
} DIOL i¢
i
Is of the
the dey
He for
But
fast The
1¢ nigh
redd nothing
here again Nikky planned too
servant who came out
of the
“His majest
to
open the doors motor
brought a
tlhint
Ness
the
bomb-shell which explodes
age.
messenger come
And then some imp
him prompted hi
but to see the
after all, a
These men beside the
armed I
nearest him, certainly one
Knrl's gents, And,
Nikky paused, he was not certain, but
it that the man took a
step toward him,
“Very well,” sald Nikky, grumbling
“But I have had a long ride, and a cold
I need sleep.”
{ Even then he had a faint hope that
| the others would precede him, and
that it would be possible to leap back
{to the ear, and escape. But, whether
| by accident or design, the group closed
| about him.
tion.
A little high was Nikky's head
the went In. He had
| thing now, and he knew it. He should
| have taken his letter and gone back
| with it. But, fool or not, he was a
soldier. Danger made him calm,
The lodge was noisy. Loud talking,
the coming and going of servants with
trays, the crackle of wood fires in
which whole logs were burning, and,
ns Nikky and his escort entered,
roaring chorus of a hunting
the ears,
Two of the men flung off their heavy
cont, nnd proceeded without ceremony
into the rooms whence the sounds Is-
It chan
WHS,
either w
were doubtless one at
wns
secret 0
own
seemed to him
fone,
as
room, a sort
sue thelr clerical occupations even
holidays.
Nikky had
cap. His
tured to
rel antly
however,
He was
goggle he
retain
that
tq
ght,
the
He see
whic!
gauge
VOlLoe
friendly,
here tonight.”
morning I shall send
I hope you have
* He did
He in
gers into the en-
Nikky's cigar
11aws here
sentence,
fin
out
Ve
royal
drew
wne
there oom
Karl
noment
room. turnes
WR Over.
was
his face hardened
looked
then that
into n b rin. He
raleing his head =i
slowly
“What Is this?"
he demanded,
y
hort up.
hiimself “I have
envelope which was
11
up.
given
wit a word Karl held out papers
and envelope to the other man, who
| took them, Then he turned to Nikky,
and now he raised his volee,
| did you get this—hoax?" he demanded
“At the cathedral, from the man Ni
i burg.”
| “You lle!"
{ moment, he left
| his companion in a fury, He
beat on that unlucky in.
dividual while the agent stood, white
{ and still, Not until it was over,
Carl, spent with passion, was pacing
the floor, did Nikky venture a word.
“If this Is not what your majesty
expected,” he said, “there is perhaps
an explanation.”
Karl wheeled
! tion!"
“The man Niburg was attacked,
; early last evening, by three men. They
beat him badly, and attempted to rob
him. His story to me, sire. He be.
tteved that they were after the letter,
but that he had preserved it. It is, of
course, a possibility that, while he lay
etunned, they substituted another en-
velope for the one Le corried*
gnld Karl, Then, for a
royal mge
on him, “Explana.
BY WVVVNWNNWY
sriveloano
envelope
gone
terrible
ns
too,
looked
- *
the anniver-
King grew
de-
the
Each year he
old grief,
ind each yea weakness
found it harder to do so.
tl
it
increased, he
crown
possible
But the
disgrace. |
of his small
On other years he had had
prince with
his dreary
crown pring
Not even for the coi
could stern
Ww him as
day
© was
presence
axed
Aununciata was not
him. They had alwg
¢g, the truth bein haps,
much tl
more
that
king ever
him loth
i y
te
ns 100 like the
143
a
to sympathize fully w
determined,
were arrogant, obstina
ge was bo
the king, were |
in full strength
ginning to soften in |
now, in Annunciata, i
and blooming. |
But there was more than fundamen |
tal similarity at fault. Against her |
father the archduchess held her ua- |
happy marriage. |
And now, secretly willing that Hed- |
wig should marry Karl, she was ready |
to annoy him by objecting to it. |
On the day after her tonversption |
with General Mettlich,. she visited the |
king. It was afternoon. The King had |
spent the morning in his study, prop-
ped with pillows as was alwnys the |
cage now, working with a tary.
The secretary was gone when she en
tered, and he sat alone,
He had passed a trying day. Once |
having broken down the chancellor's
barrier of silence, the King had in.
gisted on full knowledge, with the re!
80
country and the smaller eflies were
comparatively quiet, so far as demon
strations against the government wero
concerned, jut unquestionably they
As for the caplianl, It was a
of from the re.
A copy of a newspaper, secret.
secret 'y
to
knee
sedition,
1d
fire
his
brought
It lay on
daughter entered,
“ Vell,
down
she
do
father,”
ut him, “h
he
health
reps
Annuneciata
She
ow
“Sit down” snid,
to his
as il
10 require
CiOH
Now a
armor. °
“That
self,
boudoir
clocks
bery, and see what
Revoluti
to day.
content !
happened
odd
that what
was a flash that «
Read this
He held out the paper a
on her pince-nez and read its hea
But next mo-
stood in front of
“You
be pub
it as
1 the
rose, and
almost as pale as he was,
allow this sort of thing to
lished?”
“No
“And
ut it Is published
they dare to say things like
Why, it—it -
It is, undoubtedly
calm. “1
with
is
": He
would not have
it. ut the sit
We are rather help
“Exactly.
yery
troubled
uation is bad.
less.”
“Not-the army, too?”
“What can These things
spread like fires. Nothing may I
pen for years. On the other hand,
MOTO We 1"
yon
1nY
we (eil?
ip
Hedwig is offered as a sacri.
fice to save the tottering king.
dom. This act incidentally ex.
tricates Nikky from a desperate
situation. Read about these de.
velopments in the next install
ment,
(TO BE CONTINUED)