THE DEATH-TRAP

DIMITRI. (Reigning Prince of Kedaria.)

Dr. STRONETZ	Officers of the Kranitzki Regiment of Guards.
Col. GIRNITZA
Major VONTIEFF
Captain SHULTZ

SCENE:—An Ante-chamber in the Prince’s Castle at Tzern.

TIME :—The Present Day. The scene opens about ten o’clock in the evening.

An ante-chamber, rather sparsely furnished. Some rugs of Balkan manufacture on the walls. A narrow table in centre of room, another table set with wine bottles and goblets near window, R. Some high-backed chairs set here and there round room. Tiled stove, L. Door in centre.

GIRNITZ, VONTIEFF and SHULTZ are talking together as curtain rises.

GIRNITZA. The Prince suspects something: I can see it in his manner.

SHULTZ. Let him suspect. He’ll know for certain in half an hour’s time.

GIR. The moment the Andrieff Regiment has marched out of the town we are ready for him.

SHULTZ (drawing revolver from case and aiming it at an imaginary person). And then—short shift for your Royal Highness! I don’t think many of my bullets will go astray.

GIR. The revolver was never a favourite weapon of mine. I shall finish the job with this. (Half draws his sword and sends it back into its scabbard with a click.)

VONTIEFF. Oh, we shall do for him right enough. It’s a pity he’s such a boy, though. I would rather we had a grown man to deal with.

GIR. We must take our chance when we can find it. Grown men marry and breed heirs and then one has to massacre a whole family. When we’ve killed this boy we’ve killed the last of the dynasty, and laid the way clear for Prince Karl. As long as there was one of this brood left our good Karl could never win the throne.

VONT. Oh, I know this is our great chance. Still I wish the boy could be cleared out of our path by the finger of Heaven rather than by our hands.

SHULTZ. Hush! Here he comes.

(Enter, by door, centre, PRINCE DIMITRI, in undress cavalry uniform. He comes straight into room, begins taking cigarette out of a case, and looks coldly at the three officers.)

DIMITRI. You needn’t wait.

(They bow and withdraw, SHULTZ going last and staring insolently at the PRINCE. He seats himself at table, centre. As door shuts he stares for a moment at it, then suddenly bows his head on his arms in attitude of despair. . . . A knock is heard at the door. DIMITRI leaps to his feet. Enter STRONETZ, in civilian attire.)

DMITRI (eagerly). Stronetz! My God, how glad I am to see you!

STRONETZ. One wouldn’t have thought so, judging by the difficulty I had in gaining admission. I had to invent a special order to see you on a matter of health. And they made me give up my revolver; they said it was some new regulation.

DIM. (with a short laugh). They have taken away every weapon I possess, under some pretext or another. My sword has gone to be reset, my revolver is being cleaned, my hunting-knife has been mislaid.

STRON. (horrified). My God, Dimitri! You don’t mean—?

DIM. Yes, I do. I am trapped. Since I came to the throne three years ago as a boy of fourteen I have been watched and guarded against this moment, but it has caught me unawares.

STRON. But your guards!

DIM. Did you notice the uniforms? The Kranitzki Regiment. They are heart and soul for Prince Karl; the artillery are equally disaffected. The Andrieff Regiment was the only doubtful factor in their plans, and it marches out to camp tonight. The Lonyadi Regiment comes in to relieve it an hour or so later.

STRON. They are loyal surely?

DIM. Yes, but their loyalty will arrive an hour or so too late.

STRON. Dimitri! You mustn’t stay here to be killed! You must get out quick!

DIM. My dear good Stronetz, for more than a generation the Karl faction have been trying to stamp our line out of existence. I am the last of the lot; do you suppose that they are going to let me slip out of their claws now? They’re not so damned silly.

STRON. But this is awful! You sit there and talk as if it were a move in a chess game.

DIM. (rising). Oh, Stronetz! if you knew how I hate death! I’m not a coward, but I do so want to live. Life is so horribly fascinating when one is young, and I’ve tasted so little of it yet. (Goes to window.) Look out of the window at that fairyland of mountains with the forest running up and down all over it. You can just see Grodvitz where I shot all last autumn, up there on the left, and far away beyond it all is Vienna. Were you ever in Vienna, Stronetz? I’ve only been there once, and it seemed like a magic city to me. And there are other wonderful cities in the world that I’ve never seen. Oh, I do so want to live. Think of it, here I am alive and talking to you, as we’ve talked dozens of times in this grey old room, and tomorrow a fat stupid servant will be washing up a red stain in that corner—I think it will probably be in that corner. (He points to corner near stove, L.)

STRON. But you mustn’t be butchered in cold blood like this, Dimitri. If they’ve left you nothing to fight with I can give you a drug from my case that will bring you a speedy death before they can touch you.

DIM. Thanks, no, old chap. You had better leave before it begins; they won’t touch you. But I won’t drug myself. I’ve never seen any one killed before, and I shan’t get another opportunity.

STRON. Then I won’t leave you; you can see two men killed while you are about it.

(A band is heard in distance playing a march.)

DIM. The Andrieff Regiment marching out! Now they won’t waste much time! (He draws himself up tense in corner by stove.) Hush, they are coming!

STRON. (rushing suddenly towards DIMITRI). Quick! An idea! Tear open your tunic! (He unfastens DIMITRI’S tunic and appears to be testing his heart. The door swings open and the three officers enter. STRONETZ waves a hand commanding silence, and continues his testing. The officers stare at him.)

GIR. Dr. Stronetz, will you have the goodness to leave the room? We have some business with His Royal Highness. Urgent business, Dr. Stronetz.

STRON. (facing round). Gentlemen, I fear my business is more grave. I have the saddest of duties to perform. I know you would all gladly lay down your lives for your Prince, but there are some perils which even your courage cannot avert.

GIR. (puzzled). What are you talking of, sir?

STRON. The Prince sent for me to prescribe for some disquieting symptoms that have declared themselves. I have made my examination. My duty is a cruel one. . . . I cannot give him six days to live!

(DIMITRI sinks into chair near table in pretended collapse. The officers turn to each other, nonplussed.)

GIR. You are certain? It is a grave thing you are saying. You are not making any mistake?

STRON. (laying his hand on DIMITRI’S shoulder). Would to God I were!

(The officers again turn, whispering to each other.)

GIR. It seems our business can wait.

VONT. (to DIMITRI). Sire, this is the finger of Heaven.

DIM. (brokenly). Leave me.

(They salute and slowly withdraw. DIMITRI slowly raises his head, then springs to his feet, rushes to door and listens, then turns round jubilantly to STRONETZ.)

DIM. Spoofed them! Ye gods, that was an idea, Stronetz!

STRON. (who stands quietly looking at DIMITRI). It was not altogether an inspiration, Dimitri. A look in your eyes suggested it. I had seen men who were stricken with a mortal disease look like that.

DIM. Never mind what suggested it, you have saved me. The Lonyadi Regiment will be here at any moment and Girnitza’s gang daren’t risk anything then. You’ve fooled them, Stronetz, you’ve fooled them.

STRON. (sadly). Boy, I haven’t fooled them. . . . (DIMITRI stares at him for a long moment.) It was a real examination I made while those brutes were waiting there to kill you. It was a real report I made; the malady is there.

DIM. (slowly). Was it all true, what you told them?

STRON. It was all true. You have not six days to live.

DIM. (bitterly). Death has come twice for me in one evening. I’m afraid he must be in earnest. (Passionately.) Why didn’t you let them kill me? That would have been better than this “to-be-left-till-called-for” business. (Paces across to window, R., and looks out. Turns suddenly.) Stronetz! You offered me a way of escape from a cruel death just now. Let me escape now from a crueler one. I am a monarch. I won’t be kept waiting by death. Give me that little bottle.

(STRONETZ hesitates, then draws out a small case, extracts bottle and gives it to him.)

STRON. Four or five drops will do what you ask for.

DIM. Thank you. And now, old friend, good-bye. Go quickly. You’ve seen me just a little brave—I may not keep it up. I want you to remember me as being brave. Good-bye, best of friends, go.

(STRONETZ wrings his hand and rushes from the room with his face hidden in his arm. The door shuts. DIMITRI looks for a moment after his friend. Then he goes quickly over to side table and uncorks wine bottle. He is about to pour some wine into a goblet when he pauses as if struck by a new idea. He goes to door, throws it open and listens, then calls, “Girnitz, Vontieff, Shultz!” Darting back to the table he pours the entire phial of poison into the wine bottle, and thrusts phial into his pocket. Enter the three officers.)

DIM. (pouring the wine into four goblets). The Prince is dead—long live the Prince! (He seats himself.) The old feud must be healed now, there is no one left of my family to keep it on, Prince Karl must succeed. Long life to Prince Karl! Gentlemen of the Kranitzki Guards, drink to your future sovereign.

(The three officers drink after glancing at each other.)

GIR. Sire, we shall never serve a more gallant Prince than your Royal Highness.

DIM. That is true, because you will never serve another Prince. Observe, I drink fair! (Drains goblet.)

GIR. What do you mean, never serve another Prince?

DIM. (rises). I mean that I am going to march into the next world at the head of my Kranitzki Guards. You came in here tonight to kill me. (They all start.) You found that Death had forestalled you. I thought it a pity that the evening should be wasted, so I’ve killed you, that’s all!

SHULTZ. The wine! He’s poisoned us!

(VONTIEFF seizes the bottle, and examines it. SCHULTZ smells his empty goblet.)

GIR. Ah! Poisoned! (He draws his sword and makes a step towards DIMITRI, who is sitting on the edge of the centre table.)

DIM. Oh, certainly, if you wish it. I’m due to die of disease in a few days and of poison in a minute or two, but if you like to take a little extra trouble about my end, please yourself. (GIRNITZA reels and drops sword on table and falls back into chair groaning. SHULTZ falls across table and VONTIEFF staggers against watt. At that moment a lively march is heard approaching. DIMITRI seizes the sword and waves it.)

DIM. Aha! the Lonyadi Regiment marching in! My good loyal Kranitzki Guards shall keep me company into the next world. God save the Prince! (Laughs wildly.) Colonel Girnitza, I never thought death . . . could be . . . so amusing.

(He falls dying to the ground.)

CURTAIN