“You shall know before long. I have an idea. These people are intimate with the Count, and mein Herr comes here for sport. The Count, their friend, has a great house quite near. Why does he not invite them to stay at Rozsnyo instead of allowing them to undergo the discomforts of an old farmhouse?”
He seemed to be arguing the matter with himself rather than putting the question to his companion.
Von Tressen shook his head. “It is very singular.”
“Not so very strange,” Galabin returned with a laugh. “If you are an admirer of Fräulein Harlberg, my dear friend, I dare say there is no reason why you should not continue your admiration.”
Von Tressen was silent for a few moments.
“Why are they here?” he asked.
“Ah! That is a question which perhaps no one could answer so satisfactorily as Count Zarka. But if we have patience we may find it out for ourselves. At present I can only hazard the merest guess.”
“And that is——?”
“That the Count may share your and Prince Roel’s admiration for the young lady. Is it too improbable?”
Von Tressen shook his head resentfully. “No; I fear it is quite likely.”