CHAPTER XXXIII
THE FISH ON THE LINE
A gleam of admiration flashed into the eyes of the queen. Here was a man after her own heart. And Lechmere had done marvellously well. True, he could not stamp out the lie, he could not prevent the thing being reported from one end of Europe to another, but he could refute it. The mere fact that King Erno had started for Asturia would naturally create a great impression.
"It shall be done," the queen cried. "I will go back to Merehaven House and fetch the king. He shall travel without delay under the care of Captain Alexis. I would that I had another trusty friend to accompany him, but it seems to me that I need you all in London.
"You do not need me, madame," said Maxwell earnestly. "I mean you don't need me here. For the moment the good friends you have here will suffice. It is necessary that I should be out of the way for a time, and nobody would guess where I have gone. Let me go to Asturia."
The queen thanked Maxwell with a look of gratitude from her dark eyes. Then she turned to Lechmere. "How can all this travelling machinery be put in motion so quickly?" she asked.
"Fortunately you have come to the right quarter for information," Lechmere said. "As an old queen's messenger, there are few services for getting over the ground that I do not know. Before now I have been despatched at a minute's notice to the other end of Europe with instructions to reach my destination in a given time. In an hour or so, the programme will be complete. I will see to the special train to Dover and the special steamer to cross the Channel. After that it is a mere matter of using the cables. If the king does not care to undertake the journey——"
The queen laughed in a strange metallic fashion. Her eyes were gleaming with intensity of purpose.