Baron Dangloss and Colonel Quinnox were beside the tall guard as
he came forward to receive the commendations and apologies of
Graustark's ruler and the warm promises of reward from the man he
served.
He knelt before the two rulers who were holding court on the
veranda. The cheers of nobles, the shouts of soldiery, the exclamations
of the ladies did not turn his confident head. He was the born knight.
The look of triumph that he bestowed upon Beverly Calhoun, who lounged
gracefully beside the stone balustrade, brought the red flying to her
cheeks. He took something from his breast and held it gallantly to his
lips, before all the assembled courtiers. Beverly knew that it was a
faded rose!
CHAPTER XXX
IN THE GROTTO
The next morning a royal messenger came to Count Marlanx. He bore two
sealed letters from the princess. One briefly informed him that General
Braze was his successor as commander-in-chief of the army of Graustark.
He hesitated long before opening the other. It was equally brief and to
the point. The Iron Count's teeth came together with a savage snap as he
read the signature of the princess at the end. There was no
recourse. She had struck for Beverly Calhoun. He looked at his watch. It
was eleven o'clock. The edict gave him twenty-four hours from the noon
of that day. The gray old libertine despatched a messenger for his man
of affairs, a lawyer of high standing in Edelweiss.
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