Maurice Leblanc - The Secret of Sarek

"'Vorski's wife shall perish on the cross.' "Which wife? Elfride.

"So his dear, devoted accomplice is to perish. It's terrible for Vorski; it breaks his heart. But the god Moloch must be obeyed; and, considering that Vorski, to accomplish his task, decided to sacrifice his son Raynold, it would be inexcusable if he refused to sacrifice his wife Elfride. So all will be well.

"But, suddenly, a dramatic incident occurs. While pursuing the sisters Archignat, he sees and recognizes Veronique d'Hergemont!

"A man like Vorski could not fail to behold in this yet another favour vouchsafed by the powers above. The woman whom he has never forgotten is sent to him at the very moment when she is to take her place in the great adventure. She is given to him as a miraculous victim which he can destroy… or conquer. What a prospect! And how the heavens brighten with unexpected light! Vorski loses his head. He becomes more and more convinced that he is the Messiah, the chosen one, the apostle, missionary, the man who is 'obeying destiny.' He is linked up with the line of the high-priests, the guardians of the God-Stone. He is a Druid, an arch-druid; and, as such, on the night when Veronique d'Hergemont burns the bridge, on the sixth night after the moon, he goes and cuts the sacred mistletoe with a golden sickle!

[Pg 334]"And the siege of the Priory begins. I will not linger over this. Veronique d'Hergemont has told you the whole story, Stephane, and we know her sufferings, the part played by the delightful All's Well, the discovery of the underground passage and the cells, the fight for Francois, the fight for you, Stephane, whom Vorski imprisoned in one of the torture-cells called 'death-chambers' in the prophecy. Here you are surprised with Madame d'Hergemont. The young monster, Raynold, hurls you into the sea. Francois and his mother escape. Unfortunately, Vorski and his band succeed in reaching the Priory. Francois is captured. His mother joins him. And then… and then the most tragic scenes ensue, scenes upon which I will not enlarge: the interview between Vorski and Veronique d'Hergemont, the duel between the two brothers, between Cain and Abel, before Veronique d'Hergemont's very eyes. For the prophecy insists upon it:

"'Before his mother's eyes, Abel kills Cain.' "And the prophecy likewise demands that she shall suffer beyond expression and that Vorski shall be subtle in doing evil. 'A cruel prince,' he puts marks on the two combatants; and, when Abel is on the point of being defeated, he himself wounds Cain so that Cain may be killed.

"The monster is mad. He's mad and drunk. The climax is close at hand. He drinks and drinks; for Veronique d'Hergemont's martyrdom is to take place that evening:

"'By thousand deaths and lingering agony, His wedded wife one night of June hath slain.'

[Pg 335]"The thousand deaths Veronique has already undergone; and the agony will be lingering. The hour comes. Supper, funeral procession, preparations, the setting up of the ladder, the binding of the victim and then… and then the ancient Druid!"

Don Luis gave a hearty laugh as he uttered the last words:

"Here, upon my word, things begin to get amusing! From this moment onward, tragedy goes hand in hand with comedy, the gruesome with the burlesque. Oh, that ancient Druid, what a caution! To you, Stephane, and you, Patrice, who were behind the scenes, the story is devoid of interest. But to you, Vorski, what exciting revelations!… I say, Otto, just put the ladder against the trunk of the tree, so that your employer can rest his feet on the top rung. Is that easier for you, Vorski? Mark you, my little attention does not come from any ridiculous feeling of pity. Oh, dear, no! But I'm afraid that you might go phut; and besides I want you to be in a comfortable position to listen to the ancient Druid's confession."

He had another burst of laughter. There was no doubt about it: the ancient Druid was a great source of entertainment to Don Luis.

"The ancient Druid's arrival," he said, "introduces order and reason into the adventure. What was loose and vague becomes more compact. Incoherent crime turns into logical punishment. We have no longer blind obedience to Brother Thomas' doggerel, but the submission to common sense, the rigorous method of a man who knows what he wants and who has no time to lose. Really, the ancient Druid deserves all our admiration.

[Pg 336]"The ancient Druid, whom we may call either Don Luis Perenna or Arsene Lupin-you suspect that, don't you?-knew very little of the story when the periscope of his submarine, the Crystal Stopper, emerged in sight of the coast of Sarek at mid-day yesterday."

"Very little?" Stephane Maroux cried, in spite of himself.

"One might say, nothing," Don Luis declared.

"What! All those facts about Vorski's past, all those precise details about what he did at Sarek, about his plans and the part played by Elfride and the poisoning of Maguennoc?"

"I learnt all that here, yesterday," said Don Luis.

"But from whom? We never left one another?"

"Believe me when I say that the ancient Druid, when he landed yesterday on the coast of Sarek, knew nothing at all. But the ancient Druid lays claim to be at least as great a favourite of the gods as you are, Vorski. And in fact he at once had the luck to see, on a lonely little beach, our friend Stephane, who himself had had the luck to fall into a pretty deep pool of water and thus to escape the fate which you and your son had prepared for him. Rescue-work, conversation. In half an hour, the ancient Druid had the facts. Forthwith, investigations. He ended by reaching the cells, where he found in yours, Vorski, a white robe which he needed for his own use and a scrap of paper with a copy of the prophecy written by yourself. Excellent. The ancient Druid knows the enemy's plans.

"He begins by following the tunnel down which[Pg 337] Francois and his mother fled, but is unable to pass because of the subsidence which has been produced. He retraces his steps and comes out on the Black Heath. Exploration of the island. Meeting with Otto and Conrad. The enemy burns the foot-bridge. It is six o'clock in the evening. Query: how to get to the Priory? Stephane suggests, by the Postern path. The ancient Druid returns to the Crystal Stopper. They circumnavigate the island under the direction of Stephane, who knows all the channels-and besides, my dear Vorski, the Crystal Stopper is a very docile submarine. She can slip in anywhere; the ancient Druid had her built to his own designs-and at last they land at the spot where Francois' boat is hanging. Here, meeting with All's Well, who is sleeping under the boat, the ancient Druid introduces himself. Immediate display of sympathy. They make a start. But, half-way up the ascent, All's Well branches off. At this place the wall is the cliff is, so to speak, patched with movable blocks of stone. In the middle of these stones is an opening, an opening made by Maguennoc, as the ancient Druid discovered later, in order to enter the hall of sacrifices and the mortuary crypts. Thus, the ancient Druid finds himself in the thick of the plot, master above ground and below. Only, it is eight o'clock in the evening.

"As regards Francois, there is no immediate anxiety. The prophecy says, 'Abel kills Cain.' But Veronique d'Hergemont was to perish 'one night of June.' Had she undergone the horrible martyrdom? Was it too late to rescue her?"

Don Luis turned to Stephane:

"You remember, Stephane, the agony through[Pg 338] which you and the ancient Druid passed and your relief at discovering the tree prepared with the inscription, 'V. d'H.' The tree has no victim on it yet. Veronique will be saved; and in fact we hear a sound of voices coming from the Priory. It is the grim procession. It slowly climbs the grassy slope amid the thickening darkness. The lantern is waved. A halt is called. Vorski spouts and holds forth. The last scene is at hand. Soon we shall rush to the assault and Veronique will be delivered.