to be there.  In the meantime, the castle physician was attending to you.  Dannox had been carried away.  I never talked to a more interested audience in my life!  There was the Princess at my elbow and the Countess—­pretty as a picture—­back of her, all eyes, both of ’em; and there was the old gray-haired lady, the Countess Halfont, and a half-dozen shivering maids, with men galore, Dangloss and the Count and a lot of servants,—­a great and increasing crowd.  The captain of the guards, a young fellow named Quinnox, as I heard him called, came in, worried and humiliated.  I fancy he was afraid he’d lose his job.  You see, it was this way:  Old Dangloss has had a man watching us all day.  Think of it!  Shadowing us like a couple of thieves.  This fellow traced us to the castle gate and then ran back for reinforcements, confident that we were there to rob.  In twenty minutes he had a squad of officers at the gate, the chief trailing along behind.  They found the pile of tools we had left there, and later the other chap in the arbor.  A couple of guards came charging up to learn the cause of the commotion, and the whole crew sailed into the castle, arriving just in time.  Well, just as soon as I had told them the full story of the plot, old Caspar, the chief and the captain held a short consultation, the result of which I can tell in mighty few words.  At six o’clock they took the whole gang of prisoners down in the ravine and shot them.  The mounted guards are still looking for the two Viennese who were left with the carriage.  They escaped.  About an hour after you were hurt you were carried over here and laid on this couch.  I want to tell you, Mr. Lorry, you are the most interesting object that ever found its way into a royal household.  They have been hanging over you as if you were a new-born baby, and everybody’s charmed because you are a boy and are going to live.  As an adventure this has been a record-breaker, my son!  We are cocks of the walk!”

Lorry was smiling faintly over his enthusiasm.

“You are the real hero, Harry, You saved my life and probably hers.  I’ll not allow you or anybody to give me the glory,” he said. pressing the other’s hand.

“Oh, that’s nonsense!  Anybody could have rushed in as I did.  I was only capping the climax you had prepared—­merely a timely arrival, as the novels say.  There is a little of the credit due me, of course, and I’ll take it gracefully, but I only come in as an accessory, a sort of bushwhacker who had only to do the shoot, slap-bang work and close the act.  You did the hero’s work.  But what do you think of the way they hand out justice over here?  All but two of ’em dead!”

“Whose plan was it to kill those men?” cried Lorry, suddenly sitting upright.

“Everybody’s, I fancy.  They didn’t consult me, though, come to think of it.  Ah, here is Her Royal Highness!”

The Princess and Aunt Yvonne were at his side again, while Count Caspar was coming rapidly toward them.