Ruled by Love Page 8

  “And what did you find out,” Zoleka asked him.

  As it was such a vital question she glanced over her shoulder as she spoke to make certain that there was no one near them.

  “There is no doubt,” Pieter told her in a low voice, “that the Prussians are infiltrating the City and the smaller towns. What is more we gathered they are prospecting for minerals in the mountains, which have been left completely unexplored by the Krnovians.”

  “How can they have been so stupid?”

  “That is what happens when there is no one to give orders. You have seen how helpless Prince Majmir is.”

  “We cannot lose Krnov to the Prussians,” asserted Zoleka. “If we lose Krnov they will instantly plan to take over our country and Cieszyn.”

  Pieter nodded as there was no need for him to say what they both knew was the truth.

  “I will go back to the Palace and prepare to leave immediately. I expect you will want to write a note to your father, but make it very discreet just in case I am interfered with on the road.”

  Zoleka looked at him with startled eyes.

  “You don’t really think that could happen?”

  “I hope and pray it will not.”

  “Then you cannot go alone! You must arrange with the Count for two of our men to accompany you, properly armed.”

  “I think it would be a wise precaution, and of course it would be wise for Your Royal Highness to tell the Lord Chamberlain, and anyone else who may be interested, why I am returning to Opava.”

  “Just for a tiara!”

  They both smiled a little wryly, knowing how much was at stake.

  Zoleka went back to the Palace and joined Udele in organising the rooms for the evening.

  They did not see the Count or find out what he was doing until he came in at teatime.

  Both Princesses greeted him enthusiastically.

  Udele, because he was arranging a party just for her, which she had never experienced before.

  Zoleka, because she knew that he was aware of the danger which threatened them.

  He was in fact the only person at the moment able to do anything about the problems facing Krnov.

  The Count settled himself down into a comfortable armchair and accepted a large piece of iced cake.

  “I am so hungry,” he remarked, “because I gobbled my luncheon. But I have arranged quite an amusing party for you tonight.”

  “You really have?” exclaimed Udele eagerly.

  “It is your party and everyone who has been asked has been told that it is to be the first of a series of amusing entertainments to be given in your honour.”

  Udele was looking at him with shining eyes.

  Then Zoleka said,

  “It sounds fabulous. Tell us exactly what you have planned.”

  “The party tonight will be fairly small as I could not get in touch with all the people I wanted to, but I have arranged for a large formal ball to take place in three days time. The Palace secretaries are sending out the invitations at this very moment.”

  “A ball for me?” sighed Udele in a rapturous voice.

  “All for you,” confirmed the Count. “And you are to wear your very best dress and all your jewels!”

  “I will do it, I promise I will! It’s so wonderful I can hardly believe it is true.”

  “I have also arranged,” continued the Count, “that there will be a race meeting next week, which is an event I understand was abandoned by your father five years ago. Fortunately the Racecourse is still there.”

  He looked at Zoleka as he spoke and his eyes were twinkling.

  “I have now engaged a hundred men to prepare the Racecourse and I have instructed the secretaries to send a message to all the people in the country who are known to own horses. If they are not up to our standard, but can use their four legs – that is all I require of them.”

  Zoleka laughed.

  “You are absolutely splendid, Franz. I know there will be a huge response. Everyone, young or old, enjoys a race meeting.”

  “I have every intention of riding myself and it will be most interesting to find out what opposition I will have to encounter.”

  “You must not win every race,” Zoleka smiled at him, “even if you are heavily handicapped!”

  “You are never to mention that word,” the Count replied in mock dismay. “Of course I want to win.”

  “You have to behave like a gentleman and give the others a chance!”

  “I am just wondering if I should include a Ladies race.”

  Zoleka stared at the Count in astonishment.

  It was something she had never heard of before, but Udele, however, quickly intervened,

  “I want to ride in a horse race. It would be the most thrilling thing I have ever done. Please, please let me take part.”

  The Count looked across at Zoleka, who made a gesture with her hands.

  “It is unusual but certainly original and it will start people talking.”

  “That is exactly what we want,” added the Count.

  There was no need for either of them to say more.

  They knew nothing could more attract the attention of the men and women in the street than a race meeting in which women were to participate.

  “I have a number of other ideas up my sleeve,” the Count murmured. “But I am not going to talk about them at the moment. What I want is to make sure, and this is your department Zoleka and Udele, that we are served better food at dinner tonight than we had last night.”

  “Oh dear! I meant to speak directly to the chef this morning, but I will send for him now. Do you want to talk to him too?” Zoleka exclaimed in dismay at having forgotten such a fundamental necessity for the evening’s success.

  “No, I have a lot of other work to do, but while you are talking to the Chef, Princess Udele shall show me the ballroom. It will be too big for tonight’s party, but you did say there was another room?”

  “The Music room,” supplied Udele.

  “Then let us go and look at it,” the Count suggested rising from his chair.

  They disappeared and Zoleka rang the bell.

  When the butler came in she told him she wished to speak to the chef.

  “And afterwards I want to talk to you.”

  He was a middle-aged man, who she thought looked intelligent and would understand everything she required. However, she wanted to make quite sure.

  The whole dinner last night had been very slovenly, the silver needed a good cleaning and the table had not been decorated.

  The chef was with her a few minutes later and to her relief he was a young man and seemed intelligent.

  She realised as soon as he spoke to her that he was French, so speaking to him in his own language, she asked how long he had been at the Palace.

  “I came here from Paris, Your Royal Highness,” he replied. “I am making a tour of Europe staying in different countries to learn their special dishes and also teach them a little about French cooking.”

  Zoleka smiled.

  “Which they certainly need in abundance in Krnov! You might be interested to hear that my father employs a French chef at home in Opava and the French, of course, know more about food than any other nation in Europe.”

  The chef bowed.

  “That’s so very kind of Your Royal Highness and if I’m allowed to I’ll do my very best to please.”

  “That is exactly what I want to talk to you about.”

  She quickly found out that up to now he had been very much restricted not only in regard to which food was bought but how it was prepared.

  The Lord Chamberlain passed all the Palace menus and invariably he ordered the same dishes over and over again, because they were what he himself preferred.

  It did not take long for Zoleka to tell the chef that she wanted good French cooking, leaving the young chef delighted to have the opportunity to use his talent and skills to create fine food. She also told him that he must engage more help because of the
future parties the Count intended to arrange for Princess Udele.

  “That’s good news, very good news indeed, Your Royal Highness. I promise you that if I have enough help I can perform miracles.”

  “You are to engage as many servants as you require and if there is any trouble from the Lord Chamberlain, tell him they were my orders and I will discuss it with him.”

  The chef left her, hurrying off to start preparing for tonight’s dinner.

  Zoleka next had a heart-to-heart talk with the butler, explaining that they were planning to invite perhaps thirty or forty people for dinner.

  He threw up his hands in horror.

  “It’s impossible, Your Royal Highness, quite, quite impossible,” he cried, somewhat hysterically.

  “I am afraid it has to be possible. The guests have already accepted the invitations, which have been sent out in Her Royal Highness’s name and, let me tell you, this is to be the first of a great number of parties.”

  “But I can’t do it with the small number of footmen I’ve got at the moment,” he expostulated.

  “Then engage more.”

  “I don’t think the Lord Chamberlain will allow me to do so.”

  “At this very moment,” asserted Zoleka, “I am in command. I have come to visit Krnov at the request of the Prime Minister to ensure that this country takes its proper place beside Opava, which is my own country, and Cieszyn, which is Prince Vaslov’s. I regret to say that you lag very far behind them and are giving a very poor impression to the outside world.”

  The butler was silent and she continued,

  “Either you collaborate and do what I require or I will find someone who will. It should not be difficult in a City where so many people are unemployed.”

  The butler, who clearly had no wish to lose his job, climbed down at once.

  “I’ll try and do what Your Royal Highness requires, but it’ll not be easy.”

  “Nothing is easy when things have been neglected and allowed to deteriorate as they have here in the Palace. Employ as many men as you like and I hope tonight at the dinner party the silver will at least be clean and shining, and the very best decorations you keep in the safe must be brought out.”

  She thought the butler was looking rather stricken.

  “May I offer a suggestion? As this is a rush and, as you say, you are short-handed, why not contact the best restaurant in the City and ask them to send you the number of waiters you require? I am sure they would be delighted to come to the Palace – and I will see to it that the Lord Chamberlain pays them appropriately for such occasions.”

  The butler visibly cheered up.

  “I think I can do that, Your Royal Highness, and I know an excellent local restaurant that would be only too honoured if they are asked to help.”

  “Well, go and see them immediately or send one of your men to do so. There is not much time as the Count has asked the guests to be here at eight o’clock.”

  The butler hurried from the room.

  Feeling as if she had fought two minor battles and been successful, Zoleka poured herself another cup of tea.

  She was sipping it when the door opened abruptly and the Lord Chamberlain came bursting in.

  He was looking angry and she was not surprised when he said,

  “I simply cannot understand what is happening here, Your Royal Highness, or why so many orders are being given to the staff without consulting me.”

  “I did not want to trouble you, but the Count has invited, on behalf of the Princess, a large number of young guests to dinner here tonight and has asked me to notify the chef, and of course the butler.”

  “A large number of guests!” the Lord Chamberlain repeated. “Just how can we entertain them all at such short notice?”

  “Quite easily if they carry out my instructions.”

  “But it is going to cost money and I am certain that His Royal Highness will consider it a totally unnecessary extravagance.”

  “If His Royal Highness is capable of understanding what is being planned,” said Zoleka slowly, “then perhaps it would be wise for me to talk to him. I will explain both why I am here and why it is essential that we should let the world outside be aware there is life in the Palace, and it is not in such a deplorable state as has been widely reported.”

  The Lord Chamberlain stared at her in amazement.

  “I don’t know what you are saying. Who has been making these untrue statements about us?”

  “Are they untrue?” asked Zoleka. “Surely you must be aware that Krnov is not in any way comparable with the two other Principalities that remain Austrian and free from the Prussian yoke.”

  She paused, but he did not speak.

  “Your people are impoverished simply because you have not developed any of the valuable minerals in your mountains or cultivated the soil properly. Of course the people are poor.

  “They do not have enough work and, if you want the truth, your Army is a complete disgrace to any country that wishes to preserve its independence!”

  The Lord Chamberlain drew in his breath.

  Zoleka knew he was so astounded at being spoken to in such a way that he could not think of an answer.

  He would like to drive her away out of the Palace, but that was something he dare not do.

  While he fumbled for words, Zoleka continued,

  “I think, my Lord, the best thing you can do is to leave me to carry out the work I came here to do at great inconvenience to myself. I have the fullest support of the Prime Minister and I can only hope that, when the Palace does entertain, the guests will not be as shocked as I have been since my arrival!”

  As she finished speaking she walked to the door.

  The Lord Chamberlain was too astonished by what he had just heard to open it for her.

  So she opened it herself and without another word left the room.

  Feeling a little breathless after her outburst, Zoleka walked slowly down the passage to the Music room.

  As she expected, the Count and Udele were there rearranging the flowers, which had just been dumped down by the gardeners.

  They looked up as Zoleka appeared and the Count observed,

  “If you want something done well, you have to do it yourself.”

  “You can leave the gardeners to me,” said Zoleka. “I have just arranged the menu for tonight and the waiters. You will not be at all surprised to hear that we do have not enough help unless we borrow them from the City!”

  The Count laughed.

  “I rather expected it and I do hope the food will be better than last night.”

  “I have discovered one good surprise in the whole place, Franz, and that is we have a French chef.”

  “Now that really cheers me up. Do you think this room looks better now?”

  Udele had arranged the flowers on the mantelpiece and artistically around the platform on which the band would sit.

  “I think that what it wants are palms and aspidistras to stand behind the band as it looks rather bare.”

  “You are quite right,” agreed the Count.

  He walked across the room to ring the bell.

  One of the footmen answered it after what seemed a little too long for a servant on duty.

  “Fetch me the Head Gardener,” ordered the Count, “and any other gardener on duty at present and bring them here at the double.”

  The footman looked startled, but the Count’s voice was in itself a command.

  They heard him running down the passage.

  Zoleka giggled.

  “If we go on like this, I have a feeling the whole Palace will fall down on our heads!”

  “Nothing would surprise me. I expect the roofing has been neglected and the walls have cracks in them!”

  Zoleka laughed again, but at the same time she was well aware it was really no laughing matter.

  “Is everything really all right?” asked the Count.

  “If you want the truth,” responded Zoleka, “I think everything
here is totally wrong. But what you are doing is marvellous. We can only hope it will make people, whose name we must not mention, pause and think.”

  The Count nodded and then he said in a low voice which only she could hear,

  “We are running against time and that is what really frightens me.”

  “I know, Franz, we can only hope that we can beat them by keeping one move ahead and by using our brains. Obviously no one in this country has used theirs for a long time!”

  “How could they have been such fools?” the Count sighed. “Equally I do love a good battle and this one, my lovely Princess, you and I must win. If we do not, we will never forgive ourselves.”

  Udele, who was bringing in more flowers, turned round to face them.

  The sunshine coming through the window shone on her and she was looking very lovely in one of the dresses she had bought that morning.

  It struck Zoleka just how ghastly it would be for her if the Prussians took over her country.

  If they did not actually kill her, she would surely be thrown out with her father to live in penury and misery.

  Into a world where no one wanted them.

  Zoleka saw that the Count was looking at her too.

  She murmured to him quietly,

  “We have to win for her sake.”

  “That is just what I was thinking. She has no one but that drunken father and by the blessing of God, you.”

  “You have forgotten yourself, Franz. No one could have done more than you have done in the last twenty-four hours.”

  He smiled.

  Then in her usual cheerful voice Zoleka continued,

  “And there is a great deal more to come. One thing which is cheap in this country is enthusiasm and one does not have to pay extra for using one’s brains.”

  Zoleka was laughing as Udele joined them.

  “This room looks better already,” she enthused.

  “And it is going to look a great deal better still,” the Count added, “when you dazzle them tonight as they have never been dazzled before and they will have so much to talk about when they go home.”

  “They must thank you and not me,” insisted Udele. “How can both of you be so wonderful as to make all these amazing wonders happen?”

  “This is just the beginning, but you have to play your part. You must smile at everyone and make them go home feeling they have never enjoyed a more delightful evening.”