"Mr. Paladin." "Hey boy, that's beautiful." "Where's the wine?" "All chilled." "I bring it up after I set the table." "The chef say wild duck just arrive." "In oven now." "Fine." "This plan is just about as good as a man can make it." "All is now up to the lady." "to begin, the snow and ice of the russian tundra" "Would melt with your beauty." "oh!" "Take a letter." "Devise with right pen." ""whole volumes to speak of, pegeen." ""what is she that all our swains commend her?" "Wholly fair and wise is she."" "You go too fast, prince." "Oh, I forget." "The hand is slower than the heart." "Oh, paladin." "Prince alexei romanov." "mr." "Paladin." "I don't place the face, prince," "But the literary style is familiar." "Of course." "Shakespeare." "When I write a love letter, I write nothing but the best." "Now where were we?" "Love's labour lost." "As you can see, I'm busy, paladin." "As for dinner..." "I will be busy for the next few weeks," "Dictating the longest, most passionate," "Most marvelous love letter" "In the whole history of mankind." "Far be it for me to interfere with great literature." "Excuse me." ""now is the winter of our discontent..." "Made glorious summer by pegeen."" "Hey boy, send my dinner up." ""waste not, want not."" "Where is he?" "Who?" "Did you see who threw that?" "No." "Do you want me to take you to the police?" "But that is why I tried to see you." "The police must not know." "Why?" "It would create the most horrible scandal" "Between your country and mine." "You sure you don't know who threw the knife?" "Prince kimo, my stepbrother." "Ever since I landed in this country," "He's been trying to stop me." "Prince kimo, your stepbrother?" "You are a princess?" "Do you doubt it?" "A princess of what?" "I am princess mapuana from the sandwich islands" "Of which my uncle is king." "Better known to you, perhaps, as hawaii." "Princess mapuana of the sandwich islands." ""history of the sandwich islands."" "Aha." "I was an ugly child." "Well, this must've been done a long time ago." "You would not think of me as a child, would you?" "No." "No." "No." "My uncle send me with a gift to the king of your country." "The, uh," "President?" "King president." "That is his name." "What kind of a gift?" "Signet ring..." "From our royal family." "I'm sure our king president will be very pleased with it." "It's not the ring that matters." "It's the meaning that it holds." "Oh?" "It speaks with the voice of my uncle." "It says, "come." "Bring your war boats and be our father."" "And prince kimo has other ideas." "Prince is a fool." "He wants the throne for himself." "And you don't." "I love your country." "Other foreigners come to us with foes, with treachery." "You people come to us with money to trade." "And what may I do for you?" "Keep this ring for me." "Protect it with your life." "Until I ask it back." "I will pay you well." "Those are lovely." "It's an excellent likeness of your aunt liliuokalani." "Printed in sweden, weren't they?" "I don't believe they'll get you very far in this country." "You refuse to help me in my great danger?" "You say your brother threw this knife at you." "No one else would have the reason to." "For your brother to have thrown the knife" "So that it would enter at this angle," "He would have to have been standing on the ceiling." "Princess, I think that..." "That is how the knife entered the door." "Then you refuse to help me?" "No." "No." "No." "No." "Let us say, rather, I prefer not to do business" "With someone I can't turn my back on." ""piece resisisan."" "Mmm." "Duck with wild rice." "I'll take that tray." "Certainly." "Go." "It's all right, hey boy." "And close the door." "The ring, please." "This would be prince kimo." "Your sister seems to have made" "A remarkably accurate estimate of your character." "What did she say?" "That you were trying to steal the ring." "You will believe her." "She's beautiful." "How can I convince you?" "The ring is mine to deliver to your president." "Why would she try to steal it from you?" "She was told to by a man who claims to love her." "Would be kind to her as long as she's helpful to him." "And then..." "Why would she give it to me?" "That's what I hoped you could explain." "And her lover?" "Would you like to meet him?" "Yes." "Come." "He is..." "Sir, you haven't seen anybody running by here, have you?" "Sir, I was sound asleep." "You always sleep with your shoes on?" "Quite." "Hey boy." "Will you return this to the kitchen" "And call the manager, please." "I've sent someone for the police," "But I don't have much hope they'll turn up before morning." "I understand there's another riot at the barbary coast." "I'd better have another talk with the princess." "What's her room number?" "There's a princess in my hotel?" "Princess mapuana." "No." "No one by that name is registered with us." "No?" "Hey boy, have you seen any polynesian ladies" "Around the hotel today?" "If a lady attractive, I think you will see her before me." "Ha-ha-ha." "What does this princess have to do with it?" "The late prince kimo was her stepbrother." "She said he was trying to murder her for this ring." "She was obviously lying." "I'd better keep it in the safe till the police come." "There's not much point in having a trap if we hide the bait," "Is there?" "Nobody strikes a romanov!" "$5,000 my friend, and I don't mean shakespeare either." "For what?" "You don't understand?" "The ring." "Isn't everybody after the ring?" "I'm listening." "In petersburg, bureaucrats think if England, america, and prussia" "All want the sandwich islands, it must be worth having." "Worth having enough to kill for?" "Kill?" "Who said anything about killing?" "I don't even eat meat." "Prince, the ring is not for sale." "Now what?" "You won't sell it?" "Why don't you say this immediately?" "Our father the tsar, he tells me to try." "So I try." "Nobody says I have to succeed." "You don't want the sandwich islands." "For what?" "I have an appointment with pegeen." "¶" "The russians and the prussians" "And the english..." "And his aunts." "¶ his sisters and his cousins whom he reckons up by dozens ¶" "¶ his sisters and his cousins and his aunts ¶" "¶" "Good evening." "You do want to see me?" "May I come in?" "By all means." "I like a man who speaks his mind" "Once I know who he is." "Jorgen von hengst," "Professor of military science, university of kiel." "At present, naval attaché to prince kimo." "The late prince kimo." "And you?" "You were present when she murdered him." "Sit down." "She?" "The princess." "Who else?" "Vain little fool with her visions of london society." "What has london society to do with this?" "It rules the world." "But not for much longer." "You didn't come to talk to me about empire and world politics" "At this hour?" "Perhaps it is too late to discuss politics." "What do you intend to do about the ring?" "Return it to her?" "If she can prove she has a right to it." "And if not?" "Then I may consider sending it" "To the president of the United States myself." "Give me the ring." "Or I shall pin you against that chair like a butterfly." "I beg your pardon." "And now, sir," "You put the ring back on the table." "Mr. Paladin, the police is..." "Mr. Paladin, I advise you not to follow us into the hall." "Mr. Paladin!" "The police." "Well..." "What about the police?" "They busy." "Can't come till morning." "Maybe 9:00..." "Shh!" "Get the ring." "It's on the table." "Excuse me." "What's that you've got there?" "A ring." "Very valuable." "Oh?" "Would you mind if I had a look at it?" "No." "hey boy!" "Excuse me." "Put that in the safe with the other one." "Yes, sir." "Your register." "Do you have some idea of who it might be?" "Who?" "I'll need proof." "Will you help me?" "Command me." "Is the dining room open?" "Yes, but you'd be the only person." "It'd be easy for somebody to pick you off with that blowgun." "Hey boy, ask the chef" "If he has any more of that grilled swordfish." "Oh, hey boy." "Get me a bottle of byrne castler doctoran." "Put it in the silver ice bucket." "Silver ice bucket?" "That's right." "And polish the bucket till it shines like a mirror." "Like a mirror?" "Mm-hmm." "Yes, mr." "Paladin." "Like a mirror." "Now, hey boy, will you go back by the drapes, please?" "There now." "Yeah." "That's fine." "Very clever." "Thank you." "Now, if you will take this..." "And stand over there and watch." "And if you see anyone coming, drop this." "But hard to replace." "So is your life, hey boy." "Thank you very much." "Madam, I'm sorry." "The dining room is closed." "I am princess mapuana." "It's quite all right." "May I join you?" "By all means." "I owe you an explanation, don't I?" "I would say you do." "There's still maybe time" "To save a few lives in this hotel." "There was this man." "He said he loved me." "The truth is, he was after the ring." "I've been a fool." "Now I..." "I have only you to turn to." "Tell me his name." "Oh, mr." "Paladin," "I am all alone in a strange country." "I'm lonely..." "And afraid." "But, your highness, the dining room is closed." "Thank you." "you didn't tell me you were having a party." "Hey boy." "Pegeen." "Wilfred gateshead, huh?" "Passport from chosing, one from russia," "One from hungary, and one from germany." "Not even english at all." "A citizen of the world." "And a murderer." "He tried to kill me." "With such a child's toy?" "Mm-hmm." "Princess, I am terribly sorry." "I know you'll realize it was self-defense." "Anyone would have done the same." "Who is he?" "I beg your pardon." "Prince alexei romanov." "Princess mapuana of the sandwich islands." "Petersburg did not tell me that cannibals are gorgeous." "Mr. Paladin," "Could I have the ring back for the king president?" "Princess, I don't think so." "Alexei, why don't you take the ring." "Not on your life." "You take the islands." "That's a fair exchange." "I'll take the islands and you take the princess." "I would be exiled from home." "Have you seen paris?" "Not see paris?" "I will remedy that situation." "Paladin, farewell." "I am off to a wonderful exile to paris." "Come, dear." "I have a wonderful future all planned for you." "What?" "Ha-ha-ha." ""whole volumes spoke of her." ""wholly fair and wise was she, pegeen." "Pegeen, pegeen, good night."" "Thank you, hey boy." "Maybe you will send ring to president now?" "Hey boy, you may rest assured." "You know, uh, mr." "Paladin?" "Hmm?" "That would make hawaii the 39th state in the union." "In the union, huh?" "¶ "have gun, will travel" reads the card of a man ¶" "¶ a knight without armor in a savage land ¶" "¶ his fast gun-for-hire heeds the calling wind ¶" "¶ a soldier of fortune is the man called ¶" "¶ paladin ¶" "¶ paladin, paladin where do you roam ¶"