Chapter 11 Chapter Eleven

The wedding day is approaching.In two days, the sun will rise on the horizon of the city of Raz on May 15. I was delighted to see a mentally stimulated Mira, who seemed to have forgotten the terrible past.William Storitz's name was never mentioned between her and her mother. I am her confidant.She told me about her plans for the future, not knowing if they would come to fruition.Marc and she may go back to France to settle down, but not now... How much it hurts her to be separated from her parents... "But," she said, "it's just a matter of going back to Paris for a few weeks. You'll be with us, won't you?"

"Unless you don't want me!" "A newlywed couple are annoying traveling companions!" "I'll try to bear it!" I said in a condescending tone. Doctors are also in favor of the decision.A month or two away from Raz was, by all accounts, good.Although Mrs. Rothlich will be very sad about her daughter's journey, she can bear it. Mark only forgets, or desires to forget, the nightmare only when he stays with Mira.When he was alone with me, he became frightened again.No matter how I comfort him, I can't get rid of his sorrow. He always asks me invariably:

"Nothing new, Henry?" "No, dear Mark," I always answered him that way, and it was true. One day he felt the need to add: "If you know anything...if in town...or from Mr. Staplek...if you hear anything..." "I'll definitely tell you, Mark." "I'll hate you if you hide anything from me." "I won't hide anything from you...but...don't worry, no one cares about it anymore!...It's calmer than ever in the city!...some people are busy with business, some care about fun, the market Business is still booming!" "You're kidding again, Henry."

"It just proves to you that I'm not worried at all right now." "But," said Mark, his face darkening, "if the man..." "No! . . . He knows he will be arrested as soon as he returns to Raz, and there are so many fairs in Germany that he can show off his juggling tricks there." "So...the kind of ability he talked about..." "It's just cheating on children!" "you do not believe." "No more than you! Dear Mark, you should count on your fingers the days, hours, minutes until your big day! . . . want!"

"Ah! my friend!" cried Mark excitedly, his heart beating violently. "You are so unreasonable, Mark, Mira is more sensible than you!" "Because I know she doesn't know..." "You know? . . . I'll tell you! You know that guy isn't in Raz, he's never coming back, . . . we'll never see him, do you understand? . . . Don't you feel relieved ..." "What do you think of me, Henry, I have a feeling of foreboding... I feel..." "That's ridiculous, poor Mark! ... Listen ... believe me ... go back to Meera ..."

"Well... I will never leave her... no... not for a quarter of an hour!" Poor brother, seeing his appearance of worrying about gains and losses, and hearing his words really make my heart ache like a knife!As the wedding drew nearer, he became more and more anxious.And I, frankly, anxiously awaited that day too! If I could still count on Mira to use her influence to quiet my brother, I don't know what to do with Captain Haralan. He had learned from the newspaper that William Stolitz was in Spremberg that day, and wanted to go to him at that time, but I managed to dissuade him.Spremberg and Raz are only 800 kilometers away...in a day.We finally talked him out of it.But in spite of both his father's and my efforts to make the case that it must be forgotten, he often thought of it, and I was always afraid that one day he would run to William Stolitz when we were not looking.

That morning, he found me.As soon as the conversation started, I knew he had decided to go. "You can't go, my dear Hararan," I advised him, "you can't! . . . You meet that Prussian! . . . No . . . not now! I beg you not to leave Raz." "Dear Vidal...the bastard must be punished..." "Sooner or later he will be punished," I cried, "yes, sooner or later! The only people who can enforce him and bring him to court are the police! You want to punish him yourself, think of my sister! I Please listen to me... as friends... the wedding is two days away... you will not stay at Raz for the wedding?"

Although Captain Haralan felt that my words were reasonable, he was still not convinced. "Dear Vidal," he replied, in a tone that made me feel hopeless at convincing him, "we see things differently... My family is about to become your brother's family, it's disgraced, don't I Should it be cleared of wrongdoing?" "No! This is a matter for the judiciary!" "If that guy doesn't come back, what can he do... He can't come back either! So, I have to find him myself... He must be in Spremberg!" "Well," I had to make one last reason, "you go, but wait for two or three days, then I will accompany you to Spremberg!"

I pressed forward with enthusiasm, and finally he promised me to wait until after the wedding, when I would have no objection to his plan, and go with him. There are still two days until May 15th, which I feel is extremely long!Although I regard it as a duty to comfort others, I am often restless myself.Sometimes, an inexplicable premonition drives me to wander the Daiquiri Street. Since the police searched the house, its doors and windows have been closed, and the courtyard and garden are deserted.Several police detectives on the boulevard watched the road along the old city wall and the surrounding fields.It is impossible for both master and servant to sneak into the house.But what the hell, despite my best efforts to convince Mark, Captain Haralan, and myself, I seem to see a plume of smoke rising from the laboratory fireplace, and a face behind the platform window, and I am not surprised .

The city of Raz has shaken off the initial terror and no longer talks about it.But the ghost of William Storlitz haunts Dr. Rothlich, Mark, and Captain Haralan all the time, and we are all exhausted physically and mentally. On the afternoon of September 13, I walked towards the bridge on Swindor Island, wanting to relax on the left bank of the Danube. On the way, I passed the pier, and the passenger ship from Budapest was docking. This ship was the "Matia Govan". This reminds me of events during the trip: my encounter with the German, his defiant attitude, which aroused my disgust at first sight; those words!It must be him, it could only be him, the voice was the same as that heard in the drawing room of the Rötlichs...same tone, same grimness, same Germanic rudeness.

With these thoughts in mind, I glared at the passengers disembarking one by one... I searched for that pale face, strange eyes, Hoffman-style vicious look! ... But as the saying goes, I was wasting my time. At 6 o'clock, as usual, I was sitting at the table, and Mrs. Rothlich had almost regained her composure and looked much better.My brother sat next to Mira and forgot about the unpleasantness.Tomorrow, she will be his wife.Although Captain Haralan's face was still a little gloomy, he was much calmer. I am determined to do my best to liven up the atmosphere and dispel the frost that hangs over everyone's hearts.Fortunately, Meera also assisted, and as a result, the night was full of songs and laughter.Without being asked, Mira sat down at the piano and sang some old Magyar songs, as if to wash away the shadow of the hateful "Song of Hatred" in this living room. In the dead of night, we said goodbye, Mira said to me with a smile: "Tomorrow! . . . Mr. Henry . . . don't forget . . . " "Forgot, Miss?..." I asked back, joking just like her. "Yes...don't forget to hold a wedding in the city hall tomorrow." "Ah! Tomorrow!" "You are your brother's witness." "You should have reminded me; Mademoiselle Mira... my brother's witness! . . . I've forgotten all about it!" "I'm not surprised at all! . . . I've noticed long ago that you sometimes do things in a blur." "I should blame myself! Tomorrow I will not be so confused. I assure you . . . I hope Mark doesn't forget, too." "I promise he won't!" "It's 4 o'clock." "Four o'clock, Miss Mira?...I thought it was half past five?...Don't worry...I'll be there at 3:50!" "Good night, Mark's big brother, tomorrow you will be my big brother!" "Good night, Miss Mi Zhu...good night!" The next day, Mark went out to do some shopping.I saw that he had completely recovered his composure, so I let him go alone. Just to be on the safe side, I want to confirm that William Stolitz is not in Raz.So I went to the city hall. Mr. Staplek received me immediately and asked me the reason for my visit. I asked him to let me know if there was any news. "No, Mr. Vidal," he replied, "you can rest assured that the person we are looking for is not in Raz..." "Is he still in Spremberg?" "I can confirm that he was there yesterday." "Have you been reported?" "Yes, from a telegram from the German police." "I can rest assured that." "Yes, you can rest assured, but I am still troubled by it, Mr. Vidal." "why?" "Because the devil—yes, he is the devil—doesn't look like he's going to cross the border." "That's exactly what I wished for, Mr. Stapler!" "You can wish for it, but I don't want to just let him go!" "I don't quite understand what you regret!" "Oh, as a cop, I'd rather catch him and put him in jail! Maybe later." "Well! We'll talk about it after the wedding, when it's all yours, Mr. Stapley." I thanked the chief of police and left. At 4 p.m. we were all gathered in the living room of the doctor's house.Two magnificent carriages awaited in the Rue dei Kaili.One was for Mira, her parents, and a friend of her family, Judge Naman, and the other was for Mark, Captain Haralan, and his friend, Lieutenant Almgard.Judge Namang and Captain Haralan were the bride's witnesses, and Lieutenant Almgard and I were Mark's witnesses. At that time, the Hungarian Parliament, after protracted discussions, decided to allow the existence of secular weddings like Austria. Generally speaking, secular weddings are relatively simple, with only family members participating.However, the religious wedding on the second day was grand and extravagant. The young bride was dressed fresh and elegantly in a pink Chinese crepe dress, trimmed with lace and without embroidery.Madame Rothlich was also modestly dressed.The doctor, the judge, and our two brothers were in frock coats, and the two officers in their crisp uniforms. Standing in the avenues waiting for the carriage to set off were women and young girls who were curious about the wedding.It seems that tomorrow's grand wedding in the cathedral will attract even more people, all of whom want to pay the Rothlics their due respect. The two carriages drove out of the gate, turned a corner, walked along the Batiani Embankment, passed the Prince Miloch Road, the Latislas Road, and finally stopped in front of the iron fence of the city hall. Leisz Square and the town hall compound were packed with onlookers.Is it the scene that appeared before that attracted them? ...Do they want to see if there will be new strange phenomena at the wedding? The carriage drove into the city hall compound and stopped in front of the steps. Miss Mira was supported by the doctor, Mrs. Rothlich on Judge Naman's arm, Mark, Captain Haralan, Lieutenant Almgard, and I got out of the carriage and took our seats in the Town Hall.The hall is inlaid with stained glass windows, the walls are inlaid with expensive carved murals, and there are two exquisite and gorgeous large flower baskets placed at both ends of the large table in the middle, and the hall is full of light. Mr. and Mrs. Rothlich sat on both sides of the officiant as the parents of the bride. On the opposite chairs, Mark, Mira, and Rothlich were accompanied by four witnesses, Judge Naman, Haralang The captain was on the right, Lieutenant Algard and I were on the left. The master of ceremonies announced the arrival of the governor of Raz City, and he would personally preside over the wedding ceremony.Everyone stood up to greet him when he entered. The governor stood at the table and asked the parents if they would agree to betroth their daughter to Mark Vidal, and Mr. and Mrs. Routlich said yes.He didn't ask Mark because Mark and I were the only representatives of the man's family. Then he asked the unmarried couple: "Mr. Mark Vidal, would you like to marry Mira Routledge?" "I do!" "Miss Milla Rotlich, would you like to marry Mark Vidal? . . . " "I do!" In the name of the law, the governor read out the clause and solemnly declared that the two were married. The wedding ended simply like that.No accidents disturbed the ceremony (although ominous clouds often passed over my mind), nor did the signed marriage certificates read by the marriage registry officials be torn up, nor were the pens taken from the hands of the bride, groom, and witnesses. Apparently, William Stolitz was not in Raz.If he's in Spremberg, he'll stay there and please his countrymen! Now, Mark Vidal and Mira Routledge are married before the world, and tomorrow they will swear before God.