Princess Zara

I had discovered at a glance that the spy was not a Russian; and that

being the case he was presumably engaged in his present occupation for

pay only, and I believed that I could turn what seemed to be a

catastrophe into a decided advantage. Experience had taught me long ago

that the Russian nihilist is a fanatic who possesses distorted ideas of

patriotism upon which he builds a theory of government, and that

nothing short of death can turn him from his purpose. But with the

foreigners who ally themselves with the fortunes of the

nihilists--Germans, Frenchmen, Italians, etc.--it is different. They

are always open to argument--for pay--although they are hardly to be

relied upon even then, for they will sell out to another with the same

celerity with which they formerly disposed of themselves to you.

"You are a Frenchman, are you not?" I asked this man, as soon as we

were alone together.

"Yes," he replied, reluctantly.

"Do you know what is in store for you now?"

"Siberia, or death; one is as bad as the other. I'm only sorry that I

did not have a chance to use my knife before you struck me; that's

all."

"I have not a doubt of it. And yet you may escape both, Siberia and

death, if you are reasonable."

"How? I'll be reasonable fast enough if you can prove that to me."

"Do you speak English?"

"Yes; as well as I do French, and Russian, and German, and half a dozen

other languages."

"Then you heard and understood everything that passed between the

prince and me?"

"Certainly. I might have pretended that I did not, if I had thought to

do so. Still it would have made no difference, any way."

"Not much, that's a fact. Why did you hide in this room?"

"To hear what you said. To get what information I could. I certainly

did not do it for the fun of the thing."

"Well, my man, I will make a bargain with you. If you will tell me all

that I want to know and answer truthfully every question I ask, I will

engage that you shall neither go to Siberia nor to your death. You will

go to prison, and I will keep you there long enough to find out if your

information is correct. If it is, I will set you free as soon as I can

afford to do so; if it is not, then Siberia, and the worst that there

is in that delightful country, too. What do you say?"

"How long will you keep me in prison?"

"A month--six months--a year--as long as I deem it necessary. I shall

want you near me where I can talk to you frequently, whenever the fancy

takes me."