NIKKY IS TORN BETWEEN LOVE AND A SENSE OF DUTY
AND LOYALTY TO HIS KING.
Synopsis.—Prince Ferdinand William Otto, heir to the throne of
Livonia, is unaware of plots of the terrorists to form a republic. His
grandfather, the king, in order to preserve the kingdom, arranges for
the marriage of Princess Hedwig, cousin, to King Karl of
Hedwig rebels because of an she has formed for
Nikky Larisch, Prince Otto's personal attendant, Countess
Yoschek, attached to the of Archduchess Annunciata, is in
love with the king of Karnia, for spy. She is
threatened by ommittee of ten, terrorists, unless
bows to will the crowr
king, who is very iil,
Otto's
Karnia. attachment
Captain
menage
she acts
the
secrete
whom
leaders of
as
the «
the
rince when tlh
and helps to
dies,
ghe committee's
*
What an irony! What a jest!
was true there was a change in
He looked subdued, almost
CHAPTER XL
wes J Cons { t
As a Man May Love a Woman. { him.
Hedwig came to tea that afternoon. | “To Karnia?
She for | Prince Ferdinand William Otto
she thing ut | left the room. “Officially?”
Prince !
put
contingency.
sad.
when
had
she asked,
rbidden
Willian tt 0 “Not—exnctly.
in Karnia ?
Nik ky
was
Ferdinar
. '
awa
reproach.
rice."
.' Hedwig
tired. J
muttered
G
oo | “We Will Go Away, Nikky,” She Said.
Laer
hig | The ey irned
without
ted on her were, as
hope,
hining eyes, was al-
IRAing
return.
ed at
Nikky,” she said.
| “And It must be soon, because other
king, and | wis ”
Nikky dared not touch her again,
knowing what he had to say. "Dears
est,” he ald, bending toward her,
“that is what we ennnot do.”
“No?" B8he looked wp, puzzled, but
still “And why, cowardly
one
10 young
on her
ne tea without
" announced the crown prince,
Hedwig was
sugar,
While he poured it,
thinking, Was {t «ible that Nikky, |
of every one, a i k 1 chosen |
to carry to Karl the m Y aFTCRSs. |
confident,
ad
1
Then,
not compre-
He stood,
bes
King,
that she still did
hend, he explained, swiftly,
as many a man has stood before,
tween love and loyalty to
and was a soldier. He
cholce,
It was
1 v}
seeing
his
had
he
to see the
jut even
dangers that
him
eyes,
the
terrible to
ght die out of her
he told her of
compassed the child and possibly oth-
ers of the family, he that they
touched her remotely, if at all,
All when Nikky fins
was: “I n it.
as
BOW
said,
might
she
have known Of
later
“How
about
J ‘hey
But a moment
threw her arms.
they are! They knew
part of the plot,
never to
rose and out
skillful
it. It Is all a
made you
Otto,
promise desert
their
sO
innounced to
and demand
ntleman in wail
stood
before
unheliey
it stood
n over a vail
and led up to
nt glory and good re
i garrison gone, its
and moat things of the
very hangt and furnish-
from long neglect, it
Hey, past menace,
walled r
its ancis
its
moldering
over the ya
mpty threat.
nr the
the silence
rooms in which to
Wretched herself, its wretchedness
called her, As the carriage which had
brought ber from the rallway turned
into its woods, and she breathed the
pungent odor of pine and balsam, she
relaxed for the first time,
Why was she so hopeless?
could She knew the woods
vell, None who followed her eould
know them so well, She would get
}
} ¥ refuge
had fled,
fs still
She wantod
eLsenne.
fresh start,
the
make a Surely, after all,
greatest thing in the
peace
wis
world,
The carriage drove
hox, cro ; iwerself o
with
on: Minna, on
t sight of the
the driver,
10 crowded her to the
seat,
ad to be here”
grandeur. My
}
gy |
she sald.
1 beside here, ‘ou are a
omer, It
“I have t just come
“Then y¢ no 1 f
appointed.
the
to Etzel”
me about my
“And 3
you will stay
“A week only.
re
Iw
“After that, you return t
“Yes, ne tl inte you
driver,
But better than noth-
the city ?
I-boro——
in wait
the Arch-
Tir d
»UL
he
broken roa
He was
that
but
newly
and once
ture
“Have you any
Ta
must
you refer
vho sent you?”
“I must refer to them
“How long will it take to
message and receive a reply?”
He “Until tomorrow
night, madame.”
day gone, then, and nothing
gend a
considered.
she said, “and listen
Cf ully I have come here to decide
a certain question. Whether you know
what that question is or not, not
matter, But before I decide it I must
take a certain journey. I wish to make
that journey, It is into Karnia."
She watched him, “It is impossible,
does
“I am not
They, and they alone, will de-
termine this thing. Will you send the
too,
When he hesitated, perplexed, she
got up and moved to her writing table.
“I shall write the letter,” she said
haughtily, “Sec that it is sent.
have sent such a letter, you can judge
better than I the result if it has not
been received”
the letter and gave
proud and scornful,
for all that, and
er balcony to see
the
muntain road.
our later, by seeing a figure leay
ird the
color
castle and descended
She was rewarded
gateway and start afoot tow
Inge, a pale faced man with
hair, A part of the hidden guard
at surrounded her,
familiar,
her
member where she had
she ki “Ww and
mehow
racked brains
That day, toward evening
ented himself,
CHAPTER XIil.
Nikky Makes a Promise.
have hs i rot dwig.
He
his
the
“
ither a
ned
aded
«t thing?
“It is the only
“Put this h .
“Is that
for time,
it is
in the king
quernli« 80 nNeCeKsar
an
ut I thought
“Another thing
The whole interview
clonie, It
young protege of yours
making love to her
head.”
Mettlich's face hardened, a
was
that
Larisch
Otto's
olae, Cy.
this
ns
geeme, however,
heen over
gradual
t& significance.
“A boy and girl affair, sire. He is
loyal, And in all of this, you and 1 are
reckoning Without Kar.
hardly
is terrified.
will make many changes,
figure of a man, and women--"
“Exactly,” said the king dryly.
What the chancellor meant was that
king understood.
veen,
fore,
dro
“Otto wi
“LL
“It
Nikky
ting to t
crack
“We
We
A
Hedwig.
pped
Il or
ii INR
wild be easier
closed
his ey
w a habit, §
continued, “The
always a dang
ROWS
risis is img
need you."
weak
0 word of-
Not again.
he added pro
¥1
Hay,
she
*Exac
wns the
tiv!” snid the
yery pit
" Ww «¢
Ar
It
dry
next
instaliment,
Ai
(TO BE CONTINUED)