Part 5 (1/2)
He shook hihts, and at the same instant he felt eyes upon hi he looked up squarely into the eyes that were looking at hi face of Olga, Countess de Coude As Tarzan returned her boas positive that there was an invitation in her look, almost a plea The next intermission found him beside her in her box
”I have so”It has troubled me not a little to think that after the service you rendered to both my husband and myself no adequate explanation was ever ratitude on our part in not taking the necessary steps to prevent a repetition of the attacks upon us by those two hts of you have been only the most pleasant You must not feel that any explanation is due me Have they annoyed you further?”
”They never cease,” she replied sadly ”I feel that I must tell some one, and I do not know another who so deserves an explanation as you
You must permit me to do so It may be of service to you, for I know Nikolas Rokoff quite well enough to be positive that you have not seen the last of hied upon you
What I wish to tell you e he may harbor I cannot tell you here, but tomorrow I shall be at home to Monsieur Tarzan at five”
”It will be an eternity until toht From a corner of the theater Rokoff and Paulvitch saw Monsieur Tarzan in the box of the Countess de Coude, and bothafternoon a swarthy, beardedthe bell at the servants' entrance of the palace of the Count de Coude
The footnition as he saho stood without A low conversation passed between the two
At first the footman demurred from some proposition that the bearded onepassed from the hand of the caller to the hand of the servant Then the latter turned and led the visitor by a roundabout way to a little curtained alcove off the apartment in which the countess ont to serve tea of an afternoon
A half hour later Tarzan was ushered into the roo, and with outstretched hands
”I a could have prevented,” he replied
For a few moments they spoke of the opera, of the topics that were then occupying the attention of Paris, of the pleasure of renewing their brief acquaintance which had had its inception under such odd circuht them to the subject that was uppermost in the minds of both
”You must have wondered,” said the countess finally, ”what the object of Rokoff's persecution could be It is very simple The count is intrusted with many of the vital secrets of the ministry of war He often has in his possession papers that foreign poould give a fortune to possess--secrets of state that their agents would commit murder and worse than murder to learn
”There is such a matter now in his possession that would e it to his government
Rokoff and Paulvitch are Russian spies They will stop at nothing to procure this information The affair on the liner--I ae they seek fro at cards, his career would have been blighted He would have had to leave the war department He would have been socially ostracized They intended to hold this club over him--the price of an avowal on their part that the count was but the victim of the plot of enemies ished to besmirch his name was to have been the papers they seek
”You thwarted them in this Then they concocted the scheme whereby my reputation was to be the price, instead of the count's When Paulvitch entered my cabin he explained it to me If I would obtain the inforo no farther, otherwise Rokoff, who stood without, was to notify the purser that I was entertaining a man other than my husband behind the locked doors of my cabin He was to tell every one he iven the whole story to the newspaper men
”Was it not too horrible? But I happened to know soallows in Russia if it were known by the police of St Petersburg I dared him to carry out his plan, and then I leaned toward him and whispered a naers--”he flew at my throat as a madman
He would have killed me had you not interfered”
”The brutes!” muttered Tarzan
”They are worse than that, my friend,” she said
”They are devils I fear for you because you have gained their hatred