The Secret Of The Night(Fiscle Part 3), Gaston Leroux [best pdf ebook reader TXT] 📗

1 Chapter 9 (Annouchka) Pg 107

 

"That Is What He Said," Replied Thaddeus.  "When He Knew We Were

Here Together,  He Said To Me: 'Bring Him,  He Is A Charming Fellow

Who Plies A Great Fork; And Bring That Dear Man Ivan Petrovitch,

And All Your Friends.'"

 

"Oh,  I Only Dined At His House," Grumbled Athanase,  "Because There

Was A Favor He Was Going To Do Me."

 

"He Does Services For Everybody,  That Man," Observed Ivan Petrovitch.

 

"Of Course,  Of Course; He Ought To," Retorted Athanase.  "What Is

A Chief Of Secret Service For If Not To Do Things For Everybody?

For Everybody,  My Dear Friends,  And A Little For Himself Besides.

A Chief Of Secret Service Has To Be In With Everybody,  With

Everybody And His Father,  As La Fontaine Says (If You Know That

Author),  If He Wants To Hold His Place.  You Know What I Mean."

 

Athanase Laughed Loudly,  Glad Of The Chance To Show How French He

Could Be In His Allusions,  And Looked At Rouletabille To See If He

Had Been Able To Catch The Tone Of The Conversation; But Rouletabille

Was Too Much Occupied In Watching A Profile Wrapped In A Mantilla

Of Black Lace,  In The Spanish Fashion,  To Repay Athanase's

Performance With A Knowing Smile.

 

"You Certainly Have Naive Notions.  You Think A Chief Of Secret

Police Should Be An Ogre," Replied The Advocate As He Nodded Here

And There To His Friends.

 

"Why,  Certainly Not.  He Needs To Be A Sheep In A Place Like That,

A Thorough Sheep.  Gounsovski Is Soft As A Sheep.  The Time I Dined

With Him He Had Mutton Streaked With Fat.  He Is Just Like That.  I

Am Sure He Is Mainly Layers Of Fat.  When You Shake Hands You Feel

As Though You Had Grabbed A Piece Of Fat.  My Word!  And When He

Eats He Wags His Jaw Fattishly.  His Head Is Like That,  Too; Bald,

You Know,  With A Cranium Like Fresh Lard.  He Speaks Softly And Looks

At You Like A Kid Looking To Its Mother For A Juicy Meal."

 

"But - Why - It Is Natacha!" Murmured The Lips Of The Young Man.

 

"Certainly It Is Natacha,  Natacha Herself," Exclaimed Ivan

Petrovitch,  Who Had Used His Glasses The Better To See Whom The

Young French Journalist Was Looking At.  "Ah,  The Dear Child!

She Has Wanted To See Annouchka For A Long Time."

 

"What,  Natacha!  So It Is.  So It Is.  Natacha!  Natacha!" Said The

Others.  "And With Boris Mourazoff's Parents."

 

"But Boris Is Not There," Sniggered Thaddeus Tehitchnikoff.

 

"Oh,  He Can't Be Far Away.  If He Was There We Would See Michael

Korsakoff Too.  They Keep Close On Each Other's Heels."

 

"How Has She Happened To Leave The General?  She Said She Couldn't

Part 1 Chapter 9 (Annouchka) Pg 108

Bear To Be Away From Him."

 

"Except To See Annouchka," Replied Ivan.  "She Wanted To See Her,

And Talked So About It When I Was There That Even Feodor Feodorovitch

Was Rather Scandalized At Her And Matrena Petrovna Reproved Her

Downright Rudely.  But What A Girl Wishes The Gods Bring About.

That's The Way."

 

"That's So,  I Know," Put In Athanase.  "Ivan Petrovitch Is Right.

Natacha Hasn't Been Able To Hold Herself In Since She Read That

Annouchka Was Going To Make Her Debut At Krestowsky.  She Said

She Wasn't Going To Die Without Having Seen The Great Artist."

 

"Her Father Had Almost Drawn Her Away From That Crowd," Affirmed

Ivan,  "And That Was As It Should Be.  She Must Have Fixed Up This

Affair With Boris And His Parents."

 

"Yes,  Feodor Certainly Isn't Aware That His Daughter's Idea Was To

Applaud The Heroine Of Kasan Station.  She Is Certainly Made Of

Stern Stuff,  My Word," Said Athanase.

 

"Natacha,  You Must Remember,  Is A Student," Said Thaddeus,  Shaking

His Head; "A True Student.  They Have Misfortunes Like That Now In

So Many Families.  I Recall,  Apropos Of What Ivan Said Just Now,

How Today She Asked Michael Korsakoff,  Before Me,  To Let Her Know

Where Annouchka Would Sing.  More Yet,  She Said She Wished To Speak

To That Artist If It Were Possible.  Michael Frowned On That Idea,

Even Before Me.  But Michael Couldn't Refuse Her,  Any More Than The

Others.  He Can Reach Annouchka Easier Than Anyone Else.  You

Remember It Was He Who Rode Hard And Arrived In Time With The Pardon

For That Beautiful Witch; She Ought Not To Forget Him If She Cared

For Her Life."

 

"Anyone Who Knows Michael Nikolaievitch Knows That He Did His Duty

Promptly," Announced Athanase Georgevitch Crisply.  "But He Would

Not Have Gone A Step Further To Save Annouchka.  Even Now He Won't

Compromise His Career By Being Seen At The Home Of A Woman Who Is

Never From Under The Eyes Of Gounsovski's Agents And Who Hasn't Been

Nicknamed 'Stool-Pigeon' For Nothing."

 

"Then Why Do We Go To Supper Tonight With Annouchka?" Asked Ivan.

 

"That's Not The Same Thing.  We Are Invited By Gounsovski Himself.

Don't Forget That,  If Stories Concerning It Drift About Some Day,

My Friends," Said Thaddeus.

 

"For That Matter,  Thaddeus,  I Accept The Invitation Of The Honorable

Chief Of Our Admirable Secret Service Because I Don't Wish To Slight

Him.  I Have Dined At His House Already.  By Sitting Opposite Him At

A Public Table Here I Feel That I Return That Politeness.  What Do

You Say To That?"

 

"Since You Have Dined With Him,  Tell Us What Kind Of A Man He Is

Aside From His Fattish Qualities," Said The Curious Councilor.

Part 1 Chapter 9 (Annouchka) Pg 109

"So Many Things Are Said About Him.  He Certainly Seems To Be A Man

It Is Better To Stand In With Than To Fall Out With,  So I Accept

His Invitation.  How Could You Manage To Refuse It,  Anyway?"

 

"When He First Offered Me Hospitality," Explained The Advocate,  "I

Didn't Even Know Him.  I Never Had Been Near Him.  One Day A Police

Agent Came And Invited Me To Dinner By Command - Or,  At Least,  I

Understood It Wasn't Wise To Refuse The Invitation,  As You Said,

Ivan Petrovitch.  When I Went To His House I Thought I Was Entering

A Fortress,  And Inside I Thought It Must Be An Umbrella Shop.  There

Were Umbrellas Everywhere,  And Goloshes.  True,  It Was A Day Of

Pouring Rain.  I Was Struck By There Being No Guard With A Big

Revolver In The Antechamber.  He Had A Little,  Timid Schwitzar

There,  Who Took My Umbrella,  Murmuring 'Barine' And Bowing Over And

Over Again.  He Conducted Me Through Very Ordinary Rooms Quite

Unguarded To An Average Sitting-Room Of A Common Kind.  We Dined

With Madame Gounsovski,  Who Appeared Fattish Like Her Husband,  And

Three Or Four Men Whom I Had Never Seen Anywhere.  One Servant

Waited On Us.  My Word!

 

"At Dessert Gounsovski Took Me Aside And Told Me I Was Unwise To

'Argue That Way.' I Asked Him What He Meant By That.  He Took My

Hands Between His Fat Hands And Repeated,  'No,  No,  It Is Not Wise

To Argue Like That.'  I Couldn't Draw Anything Else Out Of Him.

For That Matter,  I Understood Him,  And,  You Know,  Since That Day

I Have Cut Out Certain Side Passages Unnecessary In My General

Law Pleadings That Had Been Giving Me A Reputation For Rather Too

Free Opinions In The Papers.  None Of That At My Age!  Ah,  The

Great Gounsovski!  Over Our Coffee I Asked Him If He Didn't Find

The Country In Pretty Strenuous Times.  He Replied That He Looked

Forward With Impatience To The Month Of May,  When He Could Go For

A Rest To A Little Property With A Small Garden That He Had Bought

At Asnieres,  Near Paris.  When He Spoke Of Their House In The

Country Madame Gounsovski Heaved A Sigh Of Longing For Those Simple

Country Joys.  The Month Of May Brought Tears To Her Eyes.  Husband

And Wife Looked At One Another With Real Tenderness.  They Had Not

The Air Of Thinking For One Second: To-Morrow Or The Day After,

Before Our Country Happiness Comes,  We May Find Ourselves Stripped

Of Everything.  No!  They Were Sure Of Their Happy Vacation And

Nothing Seemed Able To Disquiet Them Under Their Fat.  Gounsovski

Has Done Everybody So Many Services That No One Really Wishes Him

Ill,  Poor Man.  Besides,  Have You Noticed,  My Dear Old Friends,  That

No One Ever Tries To Work Harm To Chiefs Of Secret Police?  One Goes

After Heads Of Police,  Prefects Of Police,  Ministers,  Grand-Dukes,

And Even Higher,  But The Chiefs Of Secret Police Are Never,  Never

Attacked.  They Can Promenade Tranquilly In The Streets Or In The

Gardens Of Krestowsky Or Breathe The Pure Air Of The Finland Country

Or Even The Country Around Paris.  They Have Done So Many Little

Favors For This One And That,  Here And There,  That No One Wishes To

Do Them The Least Injury.  Each Person Always Thinks,  Too,  That

Others Have Been Less Well Served Than He.  That Is The Secret Of

The Thing,  My Friends,  That Is The Secret.  What Do You Say?"

 

The Others Said: "Ah,  Ah,  The Good Gounsovski.  He Knows.  He Knows.

Part 1 Chapter 9 (Annouchka) Pg 110

Certainly,  Accept His Supper.  With Annouchka It Will Be Fun."

 

"Messieurs," Asked Rouletabille,  Who Continued To Make Discoveries

In The Audience,  "Do You Know That Officer Who Is Seated At The End

Of A Row Down There In The Orchestra Seats?  See,  He Is Getting Up."

 

"He?  Why,  That Is Prince Galitch,  Who Was One Of The Richest Lords

Of The North Country.  Now He Is Practically Ruined."

 

"Thanks,  Gentlemen; Certainly It Is He.  I Know Him," Said

Rouletabille,  Seating Himself And Mastering His Emotion.

 

"They Say He Is A Great Admirer Of Annouchka," Hazarded Thaddeus.

Then He Walked Away From The Box.

 

"The Prince Has Been Ruined By Women," Said Athanase Georgevitch,

Who Pretended To Know The Entire Chronicle Of Gallantries In The

Empire.

 

"He Also Has Been On Good Terms With Gounsovski," Continued Thaddeus.

 

"He Passes At Court,  Though,  For An Unreliable.  He Once Made A

Long Visit To Tolstoi."

 

"Bah!  Gounsovski Must Have Rendered Some Signal Service To That

Imprudent Prince," Concluded Athanase.  "But For Yourself,  Thaddeus,

You Haven't Said What You Did With Gounsovski At Bakou."

 

(Rouletabille Did Not Lose A Word Of What Was Being Said Around Him,

Although He Never Lost Sight Of The Profile Hidden In The Black

Mantle Nor Of