Volume I Part 14 (1/2)
The young man had gone to the University shortly after his coming of age, and from thence he had set out on his travels. For years he had not shown himself at Wilicza; he seemed to have no love for the place.
The Castle itself presented a striking contrast to most of the n.o.blemen's seats around, which, with few exceptions, hardly deserved the name of castles, and whereof the decay and ruin were often not to be hidden by a certain outward splendour maintained by their owners at any cost. The exterior of Wilicza was such as became the old seigneurial residence of many a prince and count during two centuries.
It dated from the country's brightest period, when the might of the n.o.bility still went hand in hand with its wealth, when its chateaux were the scene of a luxury and magnificence hardly known in these our days. The castle could not exactly be described as beautiful, and would hardly have found grace in the eyes of an artist. The taste which gave it being was undeniably of a rude order; but it was imposing by its ma.s.sive structure and by the grandeur of its design. In spite of all the changes it had undergone in the course of years, it still retained its old original character; and the great edifice, with its long rows of windows, its broad expanse of lawn, and vast, finely wooded park, stood out, somewhat sombre perhaps, but grand and majestic, from the circle of magnificent forests which surrounded it.
After the death of the late owner, the castle had stood for many years empty and deserted. At very rare intervals the young heir came in company of his guardian, but he never stayed more than a few weeks at a time. The desolate solitude of the place vanished, however, when its former mistress, the present widowed Princess Baratowska, returned to take up her abode at Wilicza. The apartments, which had been so long shut up, were thrown open once more, and the costly decorations and furniture with which Nordeck had fitted up the different suites of rooms on the occasion of his marriage, were renewed and restored to all their pristine splendour. The present proprietor had a.s.signed to his mother's use the income arising from the Castle lands--a sum inconsiderable to him, yet sufficient to secure to the Princess and her younger son means 'suitable to their position,' however broad an interpretation she might choose to put on the words. She made full use of the funds at her disposal, and her surroundings and manner of life were ordered on the same scale as in past times, when the young Countess Morynska came to rule as mistress in Wilicza, and her husband still loved to parade his wealth before her and her relations.
It was the beginning of October. The autumnal wind was sharp already as it swept over the forests, where the foliage was gradually changing its tints, and the sun often fought its way with difficulty through the thick mists which enveloped the landscape. To-day again the veil had only lifted towards noon, but now the sun shone brightly into the _salon_ which communicated with the Princess's study, and in which she usually sat. It was a large apartment, lofty and somewhat gloomy, like all the rooms in the Castle, with deep window-niches and a s.p.a.cious chimney-place, where, as a protection against the chills of autumn, a fire was sparkling. The heavy dark-green curtains were thrown far back, and the full daylight streaming in displayed the solid handsome furniture, in all which the same dark-green hue predominated.
The only occupants of the room at the present moment were Count Morynski and the Princess. The Count often came over with his daughter from Rakowicz, and would spend days, even weeks, with his sister. On this occasion he had arrived on a long visit. The years which had pa.s.sed over his head had left visible traces--his hair had grown greyer, and there were more lines imprinted on his forehead--but the expression of that grave, characteristic face remained unaltered. In the Princess, on the other hand, there was hardly any change. The features of this still beautiful woman were as cold and proud, her bearing as haughty, as in the old days. Although at the expiration of the year she had laid aside her deep widow's mourning, she yet constantly dressed in black; and her dark, though exceedingly rich, attire set off her tall figure to full advantage. She was now engaged in an animated conversation with her brother.
”I do not understand why the news should surprise you,” said she. ”We must both of us have been prepared for it for some time. To me, at least, it has always been a matter for wonder that Waldemar should remain so long and so persistently absent from his estates.”
”That is just what causes my surprise,” said the Count. ”He has avoided Wilicza hitherto in the most evident manner. Why should he come now so suddenly, without any previous intimation of his plan? What can he want here?”
”What should he want but to hunt and shoot?” replied the Princess. ”You know he has inherited from his father a pa.s.sion for sport. I am convinced that he only chose the University of J---- because it lies in a well-wooded country; and that, instead of attending the lectures, he roamed about all day with his gun and bag. It will have been the same, no doubt, on his travels. It is certain that he thinks of, and cares for, nothing but sport.”
”He could not come at a worse time,” said Morynski. ”Just now everything depends upon your remaining complete mistress here. Rakowicz lies too far from the frontier. We are watched on all sides, hemmed in by all manner of difficulties. It is absolutely necessary we should keep Wilicza in our hands.”
”I know it,” said the Princess, ”and I will take care so to keep it.
You are right, the visit comes at a most inopportune moment; but I cannot prevent my son from visiting his own estates when he thinks proper. We must be very prudent.”
The Count waved his hand impatiently.
”Prudence alone will not suffice. We ought simply to give up the whole business while Waldemar stays at the Castle, and that is impossible.”
”It is not necessary either, for he will be little enough at the Castle, or I am mistaken in the charm which our forests must exercise over such a son of Nimrod. With Nordeck this pa.s.sion for sport became at last a perfect mania, and Waldemar is exactly like his father in this respect. We shall not see much of him; he will be out all day in the forests, and will, a.s.suredly, pay no attention to what is going on at Wilicza. The only thing here which can have any interest for him is the great collection of guns in the armoury, and that we will willingly leave to him.”
There was a sort of half-contemptuous raillery in her words; but the Count's voice was grave and a little doubtful as he answered--
”Four years have gone by since you saw Waldemar. You could do what you liked with him then, it is true, though at first I greatly doubted your power over him. It is to be hoped you will succeed as well now.”
”I think it likely,” returned the Princess, with calm a.s.surance.
”Besides, he is really not so difficult to manage as you imagine. His stubborn self-will furnishes the very best hold over him. You have only to give way to his rough violence in the first moment, and maintain him in the implicit belief that his will is to be respected, come what may, and you have him altogether in your hands. If we tell him every day that he is sole and unrestricted master of Wilicza, it will not occur to him to wish to be so in reality. I do not credit him with sufficient intelligence for any very deep interest in the state of affairs on his estates. We may make our minds easy.”
”I must depend altogether on your judgment in the matter,” said Morynski. ”I myself have only seen him twice. When did you receive the letter?”
”This morning, about an hour before you arrived. According to it, we may expect Waldemar any day; he was already on his road hither. He writes in his usual laconic way, giving no details. You know that our correspondence has never been remarkable for prolixity. We have never communicated to each other more details than were necessary.”
The Count looked down thoughtfully. ”Does he come alone?”
”With his former tutor, who is his constant companion. I thought at first the man might prove useful, that we might gain from him some fuller accounts of Waldemar's doings and manner of life at the University, but I was mistaken. Of course, my son's studies served me as a pretext for seeking information from him, and I received in reply nothing but learned dissertations on the subject of those studies, not a word of what I wanted to know. My questions did not appear to be understood, so at last I broke off the fruitless correspondence--otherwise, this Dr. Fabian is one of the most harmless creatures in the world. We have nothing to apprehend from his presence, and certainly nothing from his influence, for he possesses none.”
”It is Waldemar who princ.i.p.ally concerns us,” said the Count. ”If you think there will be no inconvenient watchfulness in that quarter ...”
”At all events, there will be none keener than that which we have had to endure day by day for months together,” interrupted his sister. ”I should think the steward must have taught us caution by this time.”
”Yes, that Frank and his household are acting as so many spies upon us,” exclaimed Morynski, hotly. ”I wonder, Hedwiga, you have never been able to rid us of that troublesome personage.”
The Princess smiled in her superior wisdom.