They Were Divided - Miklos Banffy [177]
They shook hands and Balint then explained that he had come at once to provide whatever was necessary for Laszlo’s funeral, and added that he had brought the necessary funds with him.
‘That won’t be necessary, my Lord,’ replied Simay. ‘I have already made all the arrangements. The announcements have been sent out from my office. The coffin will be here in half an hour and the service and interment will take place tomorrow morning at ten o’clock. The local pastor has already agreed to conduct the service.’
‘But the costs? My cousin had no money, and the small annuity that he has been receiving from Azbej ceases with his death. I would never agree that the man who deprived Laszlo of everything should now wish to appear generous and pay for his funeral’
Simay smiled.
‘Azbej is paying for nothing, my Lord. There has been no annuity or anything else from him. Up until now it is I who have provided everything for Count Laszlo, and I shall settle these costs as well.’
‘What? No annuity from Azbej? But I thought…? Well then, where did the money come from?’
Simay paused for a moment, as if he had just realized that perhaps he had said more than he should. Then, unperturbed and unhurried, he went on to tell something, if not all, of the truth.
‘I used to look after all the late Mihaly Gyeroffy’s affairs; so it was quite natural that I should see to his son’s interests too.’
‘So it was you who provided for Laszlo?’
‘Not I myself. I merely arranged what had to be done,’ said Simay hesitantly. ‘I had my orders. It is the same with the funeral.’
‘You had your orders?’
‘Exactly. I am a lawyer, you know, and this had been part of my legal work.’ Simay spoke somewhat dryly, and then, to cut short any further enquiry, he turned to Bischitz and said, ‘The coffin will arrive at any moment. Please have a few strong men ready to carry it into the house!’ To Abady he said: ‘I hope your Lordship will now excuse me. I have to go up to the family vault,’ and after a brief farewell hurried off up the hill towards the manor house.
Balint was surprised by what he had just heard and asked himself who then could it have been who had kept Laszlo from starvation. Could it have been his aunts? Surely not Agnes Gyeroffy, Princess Kollonich? Or her sister Countess Szent-Gyorgyi, the gentle Elise? That was more likely; and yet how could she have organized all this so quickly when she lived so far away at Jablanka, in the Slovakian province of Nyitra? It was possible, he supposed, that she had given her instructions in advance; and yet it seemed unlikely. It was all very mysterious.
There was nothing more for Balint to do at Kozard that morning so he got into his car and was driven back to Kolozsvar where he found a telegram waiting for him. It was from Julie Ladossa, saying that she would arrive by that evening express from Budapest.
So she really was coming!
Balint at once wondered if her arrival would make for any problems with the others who would be coming for the funeral. How would they behave towards the notorious former Countess Gyeroffy? Would they greet her correctly … or cut her dead? That would be dreadful, no matter how justified. Balint now realized that it had been thoughtless of him to have sent off that telegram; but as he had he would now have to suffer the consequences. As to himself he decided at once that he would behave towards Julie Ladossa as if he knew nothing at all about her past. He would give her all the respect that was due to her as Laszlo’s mother, just as if she had never abandoned the position to which she had been born. That, he decided, was the right thing to do.
He went to meet her at the station. The train was on time.
Holding herself as erect as the last time he had seen her she got down from the carriage with head held high. She was wearing the same black