Beyond Simla - Twenty Two

[ismenin]

Hello, everyone! Just to let you know that I have written 8 pages of the next part, but still am not completely certain of what's going on. And that's how I like it! :D

That's the way a mystery should be, in my opinion. No-one - not even the writer - knows what's going on until the end. :D

anyway, here's this week's chapter, which I hope will please you.




Thanks, as always, to ladysunrope for beta.


Part - 22


Unfortunately for Elijah - for as much as he had enjoyed witnessing his brother's discomfort at dinner that first night - there were more pressing things to hand than dealing with Lord Cecil.

David had appeared shortly after breakfast, four days after the party had returned to the palace, and had asked for a private interview with Elijah and Billy.

It was fortunate that Dom was engaged with business elsewhere when the message came to Elijah. Immediately he was concerned that David wanted to speak to him in private.

"Bring him up...and keep...no, I have changed my mind. Please show Captain Wenham into the smaller Chinese salon on the ground floor, and tell him I am bringing Commander Boyd with me."

As the servant closed the door behind him, Elijah said to Billy, "there we will be unobserved. Anyone could come in upon us here."

They found David standing in the window embrasure, looking dolefully out at the trees lining the paths. After greeting each other, Elijah could see that his new friend was somewhat disturbed.

"What is it, David?" Elijah asked, anxious to know what it was that gave his friend such a sorrowful expression.

"Two letters; one for you, Lij, and one for Commander Boyd."

Billy spotted another document in David's hand. "And, that one is...?" he asked.

David handed it to Billy without a word. Billy read it in silence, then gave it to Elijah.

"Do you know anything of the man who signed this, apart from the information given here?" he asked Billy, when he had finished reading.

Billy nodded. "I do, m'lord. We shall have to tell his Highness. Where was it discovered?"

David ran a hand over his face. He was tired, it was plain, so Elijah rang for refreshment before David answered. He must have left the garrison before dawn. When the servant carrying the tea had been dismissed, Elijah motioned them all to sit. David still seemed uncomfortable with the news he still held.

"Bristow - you remember him? Portman's aide-de-camp? - he was sorting out all the correspondence in readiness for the new incumbent, whoever he should prove to be. He found these tucked at the back of the safe, wrapped in other documents, and Colonel Matthew, who is in charge for now, ordered me to bring them to you straight away. I hope this sheds light on the mystery here, and not complicate matters for you all, although I fear it might."

Elijah stared at the paper, once more. It was sealed with Dom's personal seal - the one that only two men had the use of - Basmin and Arjit Singh.

On the envelope, stamped in red, were the words

EXTREMELY PRIVATE

and inside:


General Portman.

The Prince Basmin Singh has ordered me to ratify the agreement made between yourself, as representative of the armed forces, and himself, as leader of the rebel group, known as the Hand of Farisa.

He has authorised me to pay you one hundred thousand English pounds as an earnest of our intentions to keep to the bargain you have both signed.

Please send the coded message - 'summer has arrived' - via heliograph, when the payment arrives from Delhi. It should reach you within the month. The message must be addressed to me.

Destroy this letter after you have read it.

With greatest respect,

Waseem Singh.
Secretary to Prince Basmin Singh.


Elijah shivered. 'Hand of Farisa?' He did not know what it was, but something was not right; he felt it in his bones.

He folded the document, and placed it in his inside pocket. "I hope you both will trust me to give it to His Highness as soon as he has finished meeting with his ministers today. I will get someone to organise rooms for you, David..."

David broke in. “There is no need, I assure you, nor to find me rooms. There are very spacious and well-appointed quarters in the stable block - far better accommodation than I have at the garrison, in fact, and many of them, Hill tells me, are empty. I'll seek him out there. You will know where to find me, when I'm needed."

Elijah smiled. For a duke, David really was a private man, shunning all pomp and ceremony, even when he was entitled to it.

*

It was another two hours before Dom finished with his ministers, and Elijah sent to him, informing him that he must speak urgently with him.

Elijah made his way back to the Chinese salon, from the library where he had spent a fruitless couple of hours trying to take his mind off the forthcoming meeting, and met Dom at the salon door.

"Why here, Lij? It..." Elijah raised a discreet finger to his lips and, as Dom passed before him into the room, locked the door behind him.

Dom raised his eyebrows, and then saw the look on Elijah's face. "What is it? What has happened?"

They sat, side by side on the sofa, whilst Elijah explained where the document had been found before handing it over.

"Hand of Farisa? Farisa? I do not understand why.... And Basmin is a traitor? I cannot believe it!" Dom was paler than Elijah had ever seen him, even when he was injured in the valley of the Pathans.

Elijah held his shocked partner for a few minutes before whispering into his ear. "No, neither can I believe it. It comes too pat. We must speak with Portman immediately, Dom."

"Good God!" Dom exclaimed. "They are taking him to Simla today, where a troop of guards will meet with him for the rest of the journey to England. We must hurry!"

They ran down the corridors, causing several passing servants and officials to press themselves tightly against the wall.
They found his cell empty.

"Gone, Highness! But ten minutes ago..." said the head guard.

The two men ran to the stable-yard to find Portman, once more dressed in uniform, about to mount his horse.

"One moment, Captain," a breathless Elijah said to the officer in charge of the party. "We need...to speak to the gen...er, prisoner, on an...urgent matter!"

Dom was staring at Portman, and the man stared back, not understanding why Dom was casting such a searing look at him, when, previously the king had been kinder than he knew he had merited.

Two minutes later they sat in a small room off the stables, and Dom held the letter for Portman to read, not trusting it to his hands.

Portman bowed his head. "Yes, it is true. We had an agreement, the prince and I. I would capture Lord Elijah, and, in the process, bring about your downfall."

Dom's throat was dry. "When did you meet with my cousin to organise this...treachery" he managed.

Portman shook his head. "We never met, Highness. I do not know, even now, which of the princes I have seen here is he, nor have I gained a hint of what he looks like. It was all conducted through messengers, and by letter."

"And by heliograph, by the looks of it," Elijah added. "Now, sir - be very sure of this - is there anything else you have...forgotten...to tell us? This is your final chance to redeem a little of the chaos you have caused. And I can assure you that both His Highness and Commander Boyd have their own ways of eliciting information from a man."

Portman thought for a moment. "I know that they wanted Basmin as king, for, they - the messengers - said that he was the only 'pure-blood' male left in the immediate family. What they meant by that, I do not know. That is all, I swear it!"

Dom and Elijah glanced at each other. They knew very well what was meant by it. The trouble was, who had orchestrated this fetch - and why had they decided to move against Dom now?

Dom asked Elijah and Billy to come to his office, and sent for Basmin to meet him there. But the steward returned with the news that Basmin Singh had gone out with Vigran and Mahmoud Khan to check reports of a renegade group high in the Mundra Hills. He had said, reported Fadi, that there was a hope that the traitorous four sais missing from the stables were part of this group, as there had been no sign of them at the garrison.

"The Prince is anxious to find those who plot against you, Highness."

Fadi was dismissed, and Dom sat for a few moments in silence, before Elijah spoke.

"Dom, something is puzzling me - about that document. Why would money have to be sent to the garrison from elsewhere? Surely...whoever orchestrated this business has access to enough funds to pay everyone in their employ. I cannot think that a hundred thousand pounds - as vast a sum as it is to me - would make even a tiny dent in the wealth of Ranjipore. My uncle told me your wealth is prodigious."

Dom nodded. He was happy to have something take his mind off Basmin, and the possibility of him being a traitor. "Come with me - I will show you." As they made their way through the palace, they encountered David and Osman near the stables, talking animatedly about horses. Dom, suddenly wanting to feel the warmth of real friends around him, invited them both to accompany them.

Dom carried with him a bunch of keys that Elijah privately thought resembled the Queen's Keys at the Tower of London, but forbore comment. Not for the first time did he wonder how many miles of corridors the palace contained.

"Your brother is being shown about the palace by His Highness's secretary. The man has a veritable passion for old buildings, and should keep Lord Cecil amused for hours..." Osman smiled "...if that is what you want, of course. I have invited him to come riding with me later. You, of course, are welcome to join us."

Elijah politely declined, with an answering grin, well aware of Osman's mirth, which was bubbling, as it usually did, near the surface.

"He may be a trifle fat, but he is a very good rider, is my brother. If I were you, I would not try to outpace him, especially considering your recent indisposition."

Osman shrugged. "I enjoy a challenge, and..." he lowered his voice..."Dada-ji is really a very good doctor. I assure you I am fully recovered."

They had travelled through what Elijah - not quite as well-recovered as Osman - thought must have been two miles of corridors, when they came to a flight of stone stairs, at the bottom of which was a thick oak door. It took two keys to open it, and they followed Dom through until they met with a further door, which needed another two keys to open.

After a short walk along a passageway, they came to three doors, all unlocked. Dom opened the first one. It was piled floor to ceiling with gold ingots, and gold coins stood in rows in grooves upon shelf after shelf, against the furthest wall.

There was a book hanging from a string by a hook. Dom opened it. "Gold ingots - fourteen million, two hundred thousand and sixteen pounds sterling. Gold coinage - seven million, seven hundred and thirty pounds sterling. Nothing has been removed from this storeroom for two years."

Billy swallowed, overwhelmed at the thought of such a sum of money, as Dom replaced the book, and led them into the next room. Box upon box of jewels were revealed to their astonished gaze. Rubies, emeralds diamonds, sapphires, loose and set in gold, shimmered everywhere.

Dom went over to a shelf and took off it two small boxes. He opened the first and pinned the contents to Billy's jacket. "The Order of Valour," he said, smiling. "You have deserved it; as have you, Daisy." He pinned an identical medal on David's chest.

"Do not think of refusing. They are a token of my personal esteem, however unworthy the monetary value may be. I beg you will accept them." Dom smiled, and Billy, looking down on his chest where the diamond and sapphire cross, resting against the cream linen, blinked. "It is too much, my lord. Really..."

"Hush, man! I pay more for a good pair of Hoby's boots than these things cost me. Besides, I have funds in New York, London and Paris, which Cartier draws upon when they send me these. I always have a goodly supply." He reached for another book, and wrote in it.

"There! Another two will be ordered soon. But I would not have you think I give them out unadvisedly. I have not awarded any at all in the last two years. Only those I deem worthy receive them, I assure you."

The last room held the Ranjipore Crown Jewels. Elijah was very familiar with the British Crown Jewels. He had seen them often; had carried a necklace with a faulty clasp from the Tower to the room where the jeweller waited to repair it. That article had had diamonds and rubies the size of duck eggs in it, but it looked like a mere trinket compared with the Ranjipore gems.

"This crown," Dom smiled, picking up an item from its box, "belonged to my ancestor, Pardir Singh. It was given to him by Tsar Ivan known as The Terrible. I never wear it - it is far too heavy."

It was a typical Russian triple crown, over two feet high, made of solid gold, and studded with enormous jewels.

Dom put it on Billy's head. "Bloody hell!" he spluttered. "Half an hour of this, and my head will be directly attached to my shoulders. What a weight!"

"Nine pounds four ounces. Yet Pardir wore it for his coronation for eight hours straight. He must have been a strong man." Dom replaced the crown in its velvet lined box, much to Billy's relief.

"Which is your crown?" Elijah asked, scanning the dozen or so that lined the shelf.

Dom shook his head. "None of them. I have never been crowned. I chose not to be. I am king - I need no crowning to prove that."

Elijah took out his watch. "It is time we went upstairs for luncheon, Dom. I could do with some refreshment."

Dom, who felt no desire to eat at all, knew that Basmin would come back when he had accomplished his task, and no amount of Dom wanting it to be sooner rather than later would affect the outcome of this. So, smiling, he invited Billy and David to join them.

Billy demurred. "It is not right, my lord, for a valet to eat beside his master in company."

Dom's head went up. "But I am inviting Commander Boyd to join us, as well as Billy the valet. Besides, I see no difference between the men. Come, eat with us."

Billy, who was hungry, glanced at Elijah, who grinned at him. "I'd do what His Highness says, if I were you, Bill. He's in charge in his own home, you know."

Billy, flattered by the invitation, shrugged and followed them to the meal, set out in a small chamber, where the shade made a welcome relief from the sun. Osman had previously excused himself to ride out with Lord Cecil, and they had taken a picnic lunch with them, but Arjit was there, and - thought Elijah, suppressing a grin - behaved himself beautifully when confronted with Billy and David as luncheon partners.

*

After luncheon, Dom and Elijah sat in one of the salons near the stables, where they could be immediately informed when Basmin returned.

The afternoon was well-advanced when Fadi came rushing in to say that Basmin, Mahmoud and Vigran had returned from the hunt, bringing with them the four sais who were, even now, being put in the cells.

"I would speak to my cousin privately, at first; but it is obvious to me that soon we must hold a gathering of all parties involved very soon. I will have this matter sifted! No longer will I skirt around the issues, like a timid maiden considering marriage."

Elijah smiled. Yes, it was time to bring everything into the open - and it was best to do it when all - or nearly all - were present to contribute to the unravelling. "I will wait for you in the library, Dom."

Dom put his arm around Elijah's shoulder. "I meant privately with you, my love. Nothing concerning me is to be kept from you, unless it be a slight thing, meant to enhance the mystery of the love between us."

Elijah's heart glowed. So it is true then. Where I am, there thou art.

They waited for Basmin in the study.

*

Basmin came in full of excitement. He bowed low to his cousin, the king, seated with Elijah at his side. "We found all four sais lord, in the hills as we were informed. They are now in the cells. Vigran is questioning..." Then he saw the solemn faces of the two men, and his speech faltered. "What is it, lord?"

"Sit down, cousin. I have something serious to discuss with you." Dom's face was as pale as it had been when Elijah had first handed him the document now in the king's hand.

Dom passed the paper over the desk to his cousin.

Elijah thought that if Basmin meant to kill the king, this was the ideal place to do so. He had a pistol tucked in his belt, and the door was thick oak. He could shoot both of them and escape before anyone was the wiser.

Basmin read the document, his face drained of all expression. "Highness..." He could say no more, for it was plain that he was completely confounded, and Elijah could see that Dom was much affected by his cousin's astonishment.

"Prince Basmin," Elijah's tone was cool, but not unfriendly. "May I ask you a question quite unconnected with this letter?" He looked at Dom for permission to continue. Dom nodded. He had no idea how to proceed. At least Elijah had a path to follow.

"I understand from Lord Osman that you were with him at breakfast on the morning that he was...er, taken ill. Is that so?"

Basmin visibly pulled himself together. He frowned slightly, as if recollecting the day was difficult in the face of what he had just read. Dom began to see why Elijah had chosen that moment to put the question. There was no time for Basmin to think of an answer. Not for the first time the king thought how astute a man was his Elijah.

"I was, my lord, yes."

"And you handed to him the dish of figs that had been poisoned." It was a statement of fact, not a question.

"I did, my lord."

"And who was it, Basmin Singh, who handed it to you?"

The prince swallowed, once. "Fadi, the steward, my lord. It...I was about to enter the room, and he came to the door. I took the bowl - he did not offer it, I took it from him. I poisoned my dear Osman, but I swear I did not know..." The man seemed unable to continue.

Dom rang the bell. "Send Fadi to me!" he ordered, and within minutes the steward was standing before the desk. He then asked his cousin to wait outside whilst he spoke to Fadi. Basmin, bemused, but co-operative, left the room.

Elijah had reminded Dom, in the minutes before the man's arrival that only a few men knew that Osman had been poisoned, and had not been taken ill.

"Cast your mind back, Fadi, to the day Prince Osman Singh left us on the day he was taken ill at the garrison. Do you recollect it?"

Fadi looked puzzled at the question, but answered readily. "Yes, Highness, I do. A terrible day."

"You remember carrying a bowl of figs to Prince Osman to eat before he left?"

Fadi smiled. "I do, Highness. Lord Osman is very fond of figs."

"Yes, indeed, he...was. Now tell me, Fadi - where did you get the figs?"

Fadi told him, was thanked, and left the room. There was silence for a few moments, before Elijah spoke. "Your Highness," he said in formal tones. "It is time that all who are concerned in this business meet together, and reveal all they know. I have one or two things to contribute - things I have told no-one, so far, not even you."

Prince Basmin was recalled.

"Prince Basmin, do not, I beg you, speak to anyone concerning that letter. When shall we gather?" Elijah asked, looking at Dom.

"An hour hence. In my chambers. Basmin, see to it, if you please." After a hushed discussion with Elijah, he continued, "Command Dr Ian, Arjit, Osman, Vigran, Commander Boyd, Captain Wenham, and Sergeant Hill, to be present. Fadi, Wafiya, Gafur, and Mahmoud Khan to be kept as witnesses in a room nearby. And...twenty...guards to secure the doors." He gave a few more orders before dismissing his cousin to accomplish his appointed tasks.

Basmin handed Dom the document, his hand trembling. "You must believe me innocent, my king! I swear..."

Dom sighed. "I do not, as yet, know what to think, cousin. I pray that it will all unravel itself when we are in possession of all the facts. Go, now, and give orders that the doors be locked, and that no-one is to leave the palace building - not even to venture into the gardens - until I give permission for the doors to be opened."

When they were alone, Dom took Elijah's hand. "Do you think, my love, that we will come to a conclusion of this matter, today?"

Elijah kissed his lover, softly, on the cheek. "I am certain of it, Dom. Come, let us prepare for a battle of words. This will be a day to remember, and the life or death of many rests upon the outcome!"

Comments

[verangel.livejournal.com]

You imp!!! *sputters in frustration* I have to wait, again! I absolutely loved the way Elijah directed his questioning. I find such joy in their love for each other. Hugs you tons and tons xoxooxxo v

[ismenin.livejournal.com]

I like keeping people waiting....and there's more waiting in the next part, too! Down to thee nitty-gritty in part 24. Hugs ya back. :D xxxxx

[mews1945.livejournal.com]

It's going to be hard to wait for the next installment. I looked forward to reading this chapter, and hoped you'd post it today. You do know how to keep us on tenterhooks, though.

[ismenin.livejournal.com]

I do - it's such fun! Next part is up, now, too.
I hope you're feeling a bit better, my dear. Hugs xxxxx

[laeliacatt.livejournal.com]

This web gets more intricate with each chapter and you left us hanging once again! Naughty Ru! :D

I was ready to accept that Basmin was hiding something after last week's chapter. Now, it looks like he's being framed. I don't know what to think! I certainly hope the culprit reveals himself to you soon so that the rest of us will know. :) This will be a looooong week. :D

[ismenin.livejournal.com]

Plenty going on, but this week brings a little enlightenment. Only a little. Oh, I know who did it, and why. It's the how bit that got me, but I'm confident of a satisfactory resolution. Next part up, now! ;D xxxxx

[primula-baggins.livejournal.com]

Oh, an exciting chapter, once again.

I do hope you discover the outcome for yourself, soon. Hehe.

[ismenin.livejournal.com]

I think it's worked itself out - it usually does. I never worry about it, I know it always comes right, i the end. Hugs. :D xxxxx

[janejanejane.livejournal.com]

I've printed this off to read in comfort, as usual.

Btw, not sure if you received my email, but we do have a copy of series 4 of Meerkat Manor if your friend would like it. So, if she would let us have her address we'll gladly send it off via snail mail ;0) It was screened last year.

*huggles*
XX

[ismenin.livejournal.com]

She was very grateful to you, my love. :D Huggles xxxxx

[janejanejane.livejournal.com]

Posted off the DVDs to your friend today :-)

Thanks for another intriguing chapter. You've really got me wondering, but I'm no closer to working out or guessing who is behind all this. I don't feel so bad, however, if you don't quite know yet where it is going! ;0)

Looking forward to more puzzles and/or revelations in your next...

Thanks to you and LSR, as always.
*huggles*
XXXX

[ismenin.livejournal.com]

I think I've got it all, now. But just how it'll work itself out is anyone's guess.

Huggles ya back! ;D xxxxx