CHAPTER V
THE MYSTERY OF ROZSNYO
AT about nine o’clock that evening the two friends set out through the forest for the Schloss Rozsnyo. They had been careful to utter no hint of their intention which might be overheard by Bela, Von Tressen’s soldier servant, and their nocturnal expedition was ostensibly to the feeding grounds of the deer, which in those regions are stalked at night.
A cloudy sky with occasional bright intervals suited their purpose well, and the forest paths had become sufficiently familiar to Von Tressen to enable him to guide his companion without difficulty across the wooded valley to the elevation on which Rozsnyo stood.
As they drew near the castle the moon shone out brilliantly for a few minutes, affording them, from their dark covert, a magnificent view of the romantic building perched high above them. A curious edifice blending, as it did, antique and modern styles of architecture, the rough solidity of the ancient fortified dwelling with the fantastic pretentiousness of the Gothic of yesterday. But the whole effect was picturesque enough, especially as seen by moonlight.
“A fine lair for a beast of prey,” was Galabin’s comment. “What if the inside should be as foul as the outside is fair?”
“Not an easy place to reconnoitre,” Von Tressen observed, having taken in with a professional scrutiny the situation of the castle and its points of approach.
“No,” Galabin replied; “the undertaking is by no means easy or safe, as the Chancellor gave me clearly to understand. Still, I mean to go through with it, although there is no reason why one need act with precipitation.”
Keeping within the dark fringe of the wood, they began the ascent of the hill and soon had reached the small plateau on which Rozsnyo stood. As the castle came into view from the side approach the two men could get a very good idea of its real size and form. It was a large rambling structure, covering far more space than apparently its real size and capacity would warrant. Indeed, the idea in its construction seemed to have been distance; for one part, that is, to lie as far from the other extremity as possible. From their point of observation in the valley below, the two men had noticed a light in one of the windows; here on the inner side all was dark: there seemed no sign of life about the place.
The principal approach to the castle was by a great bridge of wood and iron thrown over a moat drained of its water and planted with flower-beds in curiously modern contrast to the grey massive walls which rose from it.
All was still and silent save for the rustling of the pines as an occasional gust swept through them. The two men emerged boldly into the open which divided the surrounding wood from the castle precincts.
“We are doing no harm in strolling round the place,” Galabin said. “Let us make a tour of inspection and keep our eyes open.”
Keeping on the outer edge of what had been the moat, they followed the circuit of the building until they came round again on the farther side of the declivity of rock which dropped almost sheer down to the valley. Nothing but a general idea of the castle rewarded their scrutiny. All was dark and silent.
“Not a very promising place to investigate,” Von Tressen laughed. “We had better go back again as we came. To try and get down into the valley from this side looks like breaking our necks.”
“Yes,” Galabin assented grimly. “The vulture has well chosen his eyrie. But for a great house there seems to be a singular absence of life about the place.”
A heavy bank of clouds had now drifted over the moon, and the darkness, intensified by the wall of pine woods, was so thick that the two men had some difficulty in finding their way round the moat again, at least without stumbling down the grass-grown bank.
Suddenly Von Tressen, who was in front, stopped, so abruptly that Galabin cannoned against him.
“Look!”
A ray of light had shot out across the moat at a point some twenty yards in front of them. It came from the castle, and was rendered more vivid by the intense darkness elsewhere. The two diverged from the path now until they came opposite to the spot whence the light proceeded. It streamed from a window at some distance from the ground in an otherwise blank wall which connected two Gothic towers. There was nothing, of course, mysterious or even remarkable in the appearance of the light, which was, indeed, rather to be expected than the utter darkness in which all the back part of the castle had been shrouded, yet somehow both men felt that there was an element of mystery about it. For one thing, the room whence it came was situated at about the most distant point from that other lighted window they had seen from below, while all the intervening block of buildings seemed dark and silent as a ruin.
“I should like,” said Galabin, “to take the liberty of looking inside that room.”
“Impossible, so far as one can see,” Von Tressen replied. “There is nothing but sheer wall. Still, we might creep across and examine it.”
Keeping well outside the band of light which stretched slantwise across the moat, they descended into its hollow and crept up the other side. So much of it, that is, as they found practicable. For the angle made by the inner bank only rose about eight or ten feet from the bottom and then continued in sheer, straight stone wall. The two men were now directly underneath the window from which the light passed high over their heads; but, although they listened intently they could detect no sound from the room above them. To think of climbing the wall was absurd. At that part, at any rate, the stones were smoothly laid and faced, no hold for hands or feet was possible. After a thorough examination both men agreed that it was not feasible.
“If only some of yonder trees grew this side of the moat,” Von Tressen observed.
“Ah!” An idea occurred to his friend. “Suppose we climb one as it is and try what we can see. We shall at least get on a level with the window.”
Von Tressen nodded, and they stealthily recrossed the dip and regained the shelter of the wood.
“Let me go up and take an observation,” Von Tressen proposed. “I used to be a good climber.”
Selecting the foremost tree opposite the window, the Lieutenant with some little difficulty swarmed up the bare trunk. Galabin stood below eagerly watching his progress, which became easier as he got higher and the stem grew narrower. At length he calculated that Von Tressen must be on a level with the window, and drew back to measure the distance with his eye. As he did so, suddenly and silently the light vanished. He turned quickly, only to see nothing but a mass of black wall rising indistinct in the darkness. It was some minutes before he heard his companion descending; perhaps he had lingered in the hope that the light might re-appear, for assuredly nothing was to be seen in its absence.
“Just too late,” Von Tressen exclaimed regretfully, as he reached the ground. “It was provoking; but, never mind, we may have better luck another night.”
“Yes; we will come to-morrow,” Galabin said. “Although, after all, there may be nothing worth troubling to see. But I must confess——”
He stopped as Von Tressen knocked his arm sharply. An extraordinary thing had happened. For the moon coming out in its full brightness showed the wall blank now, without a trace of the window whence the light had shone.
At first neither man could realize it nor believe his eyes. Then, as they became certain of the strange disappearance they looked at each other in amazement.
“Where has the window gone to?” Von Tressen exclaimed, with a short laugh.
Galabin shook his head. “Rather mysterious, is it not? Let us cross over again and make sure that it is not an optical delusion.”
In a few seconds they were under the wall, looking in vain for a sign of the window.
“It was directly above us here,” Von Tressen said. “I would swear to that. I marked it by the triangular flower-bed. But where is it now?”
The dark wall above them presented an unbroken surface of stone. The moon shone out for a moment and proved it clearly. There was no window.
“Well,” observed Galabin, as they turned away from their puzzled search, “at least we have found something mysteriously interesting to follow up. Count Zarka is evidently a man worth the trouble of watching. We will come again to-morrow night, and may have better luck.”
So without seeing anything further to excite their curiosity they returned through the forest to their camping-ground.