[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
asked. "It will be discovered before ever you can
escape the camp in the morning."
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
"I shall not explain it," replied Werper. "Mohammed
Beyd shall explain it himself--we must leave that to
him. Are you ready for the venture?"
"Yes."
"But wait, I must get you a weapon and ammunition,"
and Werper walked quickly from the tent.
Very shortly he returned with an extra revolver and
ammunition belt strapped about his waist.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
"Quite ready," replied the girl.
"Then come and throw yourself limply across my left
shoulder," and Werper knelt to receive her.
"There," he said, as he rose to his feet. "Now, let
your arms, your legs and your head hang limply.
Remember that you are dead."
A moment later the man walked out into the camp, the
body of the woman across his shoulder.
A thorn boma had been thrown up about the camp, to
discourage the bolder of the hungry carnivora. A
couple of sentries paced to and fro in the light of a
fire which they kept burning brightly. The nearer of
these looked up in surprise as he saw Werper approaching.
"Who are you?" he cried. "What have you there?"
Werper raised the hood of his burnoose that the fellow
might see his face.
"This is the body of the woman," he explained.
"Mohammed Beyd has asked me to take it into the jungle,
for he cannot bear to look upon the face of her whom he
loved, and whom necessity compelled him to slay. He
suffers greatly--he is inconsolable. It was with
difficulty that I prevented him taking his own life."
Across the speaker's shoulder, limp and frightened, the
girl waited for the Arab's reply. He would laugh at
this preposterous story; of that she was sure. In an
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
instant he would unmask the deception that M. Frecoult
was attempting to practice upon him, and they would
both be lost. She tried to plan how best she might aid
her would-be rescuer in the fight which must most
certainly follow within a moment or two.
Then she heard the voice of the Arab as he replied to
M. Frecoult.
"Are you going alone, or do you wish me to awaken
someone to accompany you?" he asked, and his tone
denoted not the least surprise that Mohammed Beyd had
suddenly discovered such remarkably sensitive
characteristics.
"I shall go alone," replied Werper, and he passed on
and out through the narrow opening in the boma, by
which the sentry stood.
A moment later he had entered among the boles of the
trees with his burden, and when safely hidden from the
sentry's view lowered the girl to her feet, with a low,
"sh-sh," when she would have spoken.
Then he led her a little farther into the forest,
halted beneath a large tree with spreading branches,
buckled a cartridge belt and revolver about her waist,
and assisted her to clamber into the lower branches.
"Tomorrow," he whispered, "as soon as I can elude them,
I will return for you. Be brave, Lady Greystoke--we
may yet escape."
"Thank you," she replied in a low tone. "You have been
very kind, and very brave."
Werper did not reply, and the darkness of the night hid
the scarlet flush of shame which swept upward across
his face. Quickly he turned and made his way back to
camp. The sentry, from his post, saw him enter his own
tent; but he did not see him crawl under the canvas at
the rear and sneak cautiously to the tent which the
prisoner had occupied, where now lay the dead body of
Mohammed Beyd.
Raising the lower edge of the rear wall, Werper crept
within and approached the corpse. Without an instant's
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
o
o
D
D
r
r
P
P
m
m
Y
Y
e
e
Y
Y
r
r
B
B
2
2
.
.
B
B
A
A
Click here to buy
Click here to buy
w
w
m
m
w
w
o
o
w
w
c
c
.
.
.
.
A
A
Y
Y
B
B
Y
Y
B
B
r r
hesitation he seized the dead wrists and dragged the
body upon its back to the point where he had just
entered. On hands and knees he backed out as he had
come in, drawing the corpse after him. Once outside
the Belgian crept to the side of the tent and surveyed
as much of the camp as lay within his vision--no one
was watching.
Returning to the body, he lifted it to his shoulder,
and risking all on a quick sally, ran swiftly across
the narrow opening which separated the prisoner's tent
from that of the dead man. Behind the silken wall he
halted and lowered his burden to the ground, and there
he remained motionless for several minutes, listening.
Satisfied, at last, that no one had seen him, he
stooped and raised the bottom of the tent wall, backed
in and dragged the thing that had been Mohammed Beyd
after him. To the sleeping rugs of the dead raider he
drew the corpse, then he fumbled about in the darkness
until he had found Mohammed Beyd's revolver. With the
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]