Part 16 (1/2)
”Then hear the rest, your Highness. No sooner was the news of the capture spread abroad than the Palatine demanded of me most emphatically to give over my prisoners to him. The Turks had already offered me sixteen thousand ducats for the two, but I would not let them go at any price and sent word to the Palatine that if he wished to call a Bey his own, he must crawl out from behind his wife's shadow and catch one for himself. I had caught mine for my own use.”
Apafi laughed loudly. ”You gave him the right answer.”
”At that the Palatine became angry and by the Emperor's command sent troops against me who were to take my prisoners by force. His Excellency your brother-in-law, Dionysius Banfy, had at that time found refuge in my house and I introduced to him this woman who had completely befooled me. He was to flee with her to my castle, Ecsed.
But when I saw that the Palatine interfered with every attempt of mine to deliver Corsar Bey over to the Turks for the offered ransom, and yet all he wanted of him was to cut his head off like any other freebooter's, I gave the Turk poison, which he took gratefully for the sake of escaping justice. Then when the Palatine's troops came they found only the dead body which the Turks took off my hands for a thousand ducats.”
”Naturally the Palatine was angry with you for that,” said Apafi.
”I had good cause to be angry with him, for I had lost fifteen thousand ducats by him; yet he succeeded in getting a writ of arrest against me from the minister. I scented it in time and got together my valuables, intending to flee to Transylvania until the affair had been forgotten. Then I hurried to my castle Ecsed where, as I have said, Banfy had been sent before me with the Turkish woman. On the way I learned that Banfy had been pardoned by your Highness and restored to his former position. I rejoiced not a little that in him I should find a powerful protector here. Imagine my astonishment when I reached Ecsed to find the woman gone without a trace, and I learned from my castle warden that Banfy had taken her with him and left a letter for me. In the letter was written: 'My friend: Learn from this that a man should never trust another with his horse, his watch, nor his love.'”
”What!” cried Apafi. ”Is that the truth?”
”Your Excellency can see his writing,” replied Bala.s.sa, and drew from his pouch the letter referred to. ”The woman must be hid somewhere in his forest of Banfy-Hunyad, I suppose.”
”That is monstrous!” said Apafi, glowing with anger. ”Can a man with such a beautiful, n.o.ble wife, my own wife's sister, so far forget his duty as husband! I'll not forgive him that.”
”Pardon me, your Highness, I have nothing more to do with Banfy. My complaint is now urgently directed against Kapi.”
”What have you against him? It is unheard-of to have so beautiful a wife and yet keep a Turkish slave woman!”
”This Kapi was the man who had the use of my Transylvania estates. I determined to know nothing more of Banfy and immediately took up my quarters with Kapi in his castle of Aranyos. Of the splendor displayed by this man I had never had the least idea before, although all my life I had been to the courts of Palatines and Princes in no small number. His wife did not put her foot to the ground, but was carried to the very gate in a gilded chair, and she never wore the same gown twice.”
”What have I to do with Madame Kapi's finery?”
”I am coming to the point. It is just because of this finery that her husband is compelled to resort to all kinds of trickery to satisfy the wishes of his lady. Furthermore your Highness is concerned, for such immoderate luxury only makes the contrast the more striking between the simplicity of your Excellency's court life and the insolent splendor of these small kings. And it carries its impression with the strangers who so frequently visit us; the effect of it is already felt; for when the Bavarian amba.s.sador came recently to Aranyos from Ebesfalva I heard him say in flattering tones to Madame Kapi that she was the real Princess of Transylvania.”
”Did he say that?” said the Prince, beginning to take great interest in the affair. ”Go on with your story. Did he say that Kapi's wife was the real Princess?”
”In point of beauty and bearing she is not worthy to tie the shoe of her Highness, the Princess Apafi, if you were to strip her of the costly jewels that she wears in such numbers she can hardly move.”
”Go on, go on.”
”Now Kapi informed me one fine day that your Excellency had received command from the Palatine to have me arrested and delivered over.”
”I-- received command-- I never heard a word of it!”
”Unfortunately I believed the story, and thinking that I stood between two fires saw no way of escape except to give over to Kapi my Transylvania estates to prevent their falling into the public treasury. In return for this he gave me a written promise that I should have the property back again as soon as I was in a position to receive it. I then determined to flee to Poland during the period of danger. Kapi gave me two guides who were to lead me over the mountains to the frontier, and at the time he sent word secretly to the guard on the frontier that I was a spy sent by the Roman Emperor, who had been finding out the affairs of Transylvania and would now like to get back unseen. These rascals stopped me on the way, robbed me of all my money and papers, and dragged me off to Karlsburg. There, it is true my innocence was proved, but my money and my papers were lost. And now Kapi a.s.serts that I had actually sold him all my property and had nothing left but this leather pouch.”
”Be comforted,” replied the angered Prince. ”I will give you full satisfaction.”
”Your Highness owes it to his own authority,” replied Bala.s.sa, by way of urging on the Prince. ”These n.o.bles act as arbitrarily as if there were n.o.body in authority over them.”
”Do not be disturbed. I will soon prove to them that there is a Prince in Transylvania.” Apafi left the audience room very much excited.
Over the heads of two powerful men who stood in Teleki's way, the storm was already threatening.
CHAPTER X