Brad Buckhart was striding savagely up and down the room, taken by
himself and Dick, at the hotel. There was a black look on his strong
face and his square jaw was set.
"I suppose you'll have to walk it off old man," said Dick; "but it seems
to me you are permitting yourself to become altogether too wrought up."
The Texan stopped, his feet wide apart and his hands on his hips.
"I certain can't help being some wrought up, partner," he said. "I
reckon you would be in my place."
"Without doubt. But we are here now, and we'll look after Nadia. Hafsa
Pasha's little scheme of abduction won't go."
"Sure not; but it wasn't that I was thinking of."
"It wasn't?"
"No."
"Well, then----"
"Budthorne let the cat out of the bag."
"I don't understand."
"He didn't make a clean breast of it when he first told the story. I've
been talking with him since we arrived here at the hotel. I trapped him
by asking questions."
"Why, what do you mean by saying you trapped him?"
"Exactly that, pard. You know a funny thing has been running in my head
ever since I trapped him. It's a toast I heard once. This is it:
"'Here is to the love that lies
In a woman's eyes.
Yes, it lies and lies,
And keeps on lying.'"
Dick rose instantly and placed a hand on his chum's shoulder.
"Why, Brad!" he exclaimed, "I never knew you to talk so queerly. What
did Budthorne tell you that set you into such a mood?"
"You're my friend. I wouldn't talk of it to any one else. You know I was
smitten on Nadia Budthorne."
"Well?"
"Of course I was a chump to care for her."
"Oh, I don't know."
"Yes, I was. I'm a plain sort of chap, although I'm not half as wild and
woolly as I pretend to be."
"You don't have to tell me that, old man. I've been able to see under
the surface all along. I think I understand you."
"You do, Dick, and you're the only one. That's why I swear by you.
That's why I'm ready to back you up in anything you do. There is a bond
of sympathy between us."
The Texan had dropped his swagger and his Western style of speech. For
the time being his mannerisms fell from him like a discarded garment.
"Go ahead and tell me what it was that Budthorne said."
"Why, he let it slip that both he and Nadia were greatly interested in
this fine Turkish gentleman and that he encouraged her interest in him.
In short, she carried on a mild flirtation with Hafsa Pasha, who rather
dazzled her. Of course, I have no claim on her, and I'm too young to
think of such a thing seriously. But she's seventeen, and lots of girls
get married at that age. In this country they marry at ten and eleven."
"Great Scott! You don't fancy she actually seriously considered marrying
the Turk?"
"Why, he's a very cultured gentleman. Budthorne said so. He is educated,
and he has traveled extensively. Besides that, he is in the very prime
of life. Such a man might dazzle the eyes of a young girl. There would
be something romantic in a flirtation with him. She would be likely to
dream of the splendor and power that would come to her as the wife of
such a man. Don't call me a fool, Dick! I know! I know!"
"If you're not foolish, then you are crazy!"
"Only jealous, Dick. I confess it--I'm jealous! Never felt this way
before. I have an awful feeling down here inside of me. I'd like to kill
somebody!"
"But she threw Hafsa Pasha down, old man."
"After Budthorne was told by the captain of the ship that Hafsa Pasha
had a harem in Damascus."
Merriwell gave a great start.
"Is that true?" he demanded.
"Budthorne confessed it."
"Budthorne's a fool!"
"Oh, we both knew all the time that he was weak. I think he encouraged
Nadia in her flirtation with the Turk until he obtained that information
from the captain. Then he got his eyes open and forbade her to have
anything to do with the man."
"Nadia is young, Brad. Her ideas are not formed yet. You mustn't be too
hard on her. Even if she did flirt with the Turk a little, perhaps she
was never serious."
"Perhaps not, but still I can't help thinking she was. Of course you may
say she had a right to flirt mildly with the man. Perhaps she did. Still
I had exalted her in my own mind. I regarded her as staunch and true. I
thought her far superior to the foolish, frivolous modern girl. She knew
how much I thought of her, and she pretended to care for me. But, like
all of her sex, out of sight, out of mind. I was far away. Hafsa Pasha,
the handsome Turk, was near. He quoted poetry to her. She listened and
was enchanted. She forgot me. They all do. Dick, you're the only human
being I ever knew who was staunch as the rock-ribbed hills. You never
change, no matter what happens. All others are weak and vacillating. My
confidence in human nature is pretty well shattered."
"Oh, rats!" cried Dick. "Don't get cynical, Brad! It doesn't become you
at all. You're naturally the most optimistical chap in the world."
"What do you think I'm going to do?" harshly demanded the Texan. "Think
I can ever feel the same toward that girl? Not much! If she hadn't
learned that her old Turk was married, I'd be in the soup now. He's
married, and so I'm good enough for her until she finds some chap she
likes better. I tell you it's all off, Dick! I throw up the sponge! I
quit!"
"I think this climate has got your liver out of condition," said
Merriwell. "What you need is a tonic. You'll feel differently about this
to-morrow."
"Not to-morrow, nor the next day, nor ever!" declared Brad. "Miss
Budthorne will find that I'm no chump to play second fiddle. Don't you
dare laugh at me, Richard Merriwell! I'm in deadly earnest!"
Dick did not laugh then, but he found an opportunity when Buckhart was
not present.
However, Buckhart was far more serious than his comrade imagined.
During the remainder of that day Brad wore a heavy grouch. He kept much
by himself and avoided Nadia, much to her perplexity. Finally her pride
was touched, and she made no further effort to speak with him or to see
him.
Never had Dick seen his friend in such a mood. In vain he tried to jolly
the Texan and cheer him up. A profound cloud of gloom overhung the
sturdy chap from the Rio Pecos country.
All were more or less weary, and so they willingly rested through the
day.
When evening came Dunbar Budthorne proposed that they should attend the
one theatre of the city, which was located on the principal square,
within a short distance of the hotel.
"What sort of a performance is given there?" questioned Dick.
"Oh, vaudeville, tumbling, fencing, juggling, acrobatic stunts, and so
forth. It's rather dull as a performance, but it will serve to pass the
time away."
"Is it a suitable place for your sister to visit?"
"Well, I don't know about that. I hear the men smoke until you may cut
the atmosphere into chunks with a knife. The theatre is a rickety old
shanty, and none too clean. We might leave Nadia here in the hotel."
"Don't do that!" she entreated. "Don't leave me alone in this city. I'm
afraid to be left alone, after what has happened."
"Hum! ha!" coughed Professor Gunn. "I think we will omit the theatre.
Evidently it is a low resort. I decline to permit the boys to visit it."
And, although they chaffed him about it, the old man was rigid in his
decision, which finally settled it, and they did not attend the theatre
in Damascus.
The following morning, however, they prepared to start out to look the
city over. When they were ready to leave the hotel it was found that
Buckhart had vanished.
On inquiry they learned that he had set out by himself, leaving word for
them not to bother about him.
Nadia pouted and looked greatly disappointed.
"What is the matter with him?" she asked. "I think he's just as mean as
can be! What makes him act so queer?"
She pinned Dick down and put the question to him, not a little to his
dismay. He could not tell the truth, and he would not lie.
"I'll have to let him explain his own actions," he said, seeking to find
a loophole of escape.
"But you know why he is so peculiar--I know you do! You can't deny it!"
"I won't try."
"Then you must tell me. I insist on it."
"Please don't, Nadia! It will be all right in time, but I prefer to let
him explain."
After a while he induced her to drop the subject temporarily although he
knew she would return to it at the first opportunity and seek, with all
the intensity of her feminine curiosity, than which there is nothing
more acute and prying, to compel him to divulge the truth.
Arouse the curiosity of a girl and she will strain every nerve to learn
a secret, even though she knows the knowledge will make her most
miserable. The only way to keep a secret from a girl is not to let her
suspect a secret exists.
They left the hotel and proceeded to the public square, which is located
near the centre of the city. This square proved to be a large, open
place, where at that hour throngs of people of all nationalities and
colors were assembling. The square was a sort of public market. In the
centre was a fountain and monument.
All around the sides of the square were the little booths and stands of
itinerant merchants, the most of them with their goods spread out on the
ground before them, and arranged in the most inviting manner their
ingenuity could devise.
There were many professional letter writers, each one sitting at a desk
under awnings of canvas or straw. They did not sit on chairs, but flat
on the ground, with their legs crossed. They were supplied with wooden
or reed pens. Their ink they carried in inkhorns.
Many of these letter writers were busy. Some were writing business
communications, some were drawing up contracts or making out legal
papers, while one, with a veiled woman sitting near him, was writing a
love letter, recording the words whispered to him by the lips hidden
behind the veil.
Within the square were carts, camels, saddle horses, carriages, and
donkeys, all there to be hired.
Men were wandering about, sometimes in pairs and holding hands. This,
Budthorne explained, was a common sight, it being an evidence of
affection that was thought quite natural in Damascus.
Adjoining the square were several coffee shops, where Turkish men could
be seen sitting round, smoking hookahs, sipping coffee, and playing
checkers, chess, dominoes, and so forth. They wore long, calico gowns,
and their heads were swathed in turbans.
"Look here," said Dick, motioning toward some passing camels. "See how
oddly their owners decorate the beasts. They have strings of blue beads
round their necks."
"You'll see that everywhere, on camels, horses, and donkeys," declared
Budthorne. "Those strings of beads are charms to ward off the influence
of the evil eye."
A strange sound smote their ears. It came from the open door of a little
shop, and it made them shiver, for it was a sort of doleful wail and
chant combined.
"Some one must be dying in there!" exclaimed Dick.
They looked in at the door. A young man was sitting cross-legged on the
floor, busy at some sort of work.
He was singing!
Despite the distressing sounds he was emitting, this young man was very
happy.
He was singing a love song!
The sound of clanging, clanking, and banging, as of many persons
pounding tin pans and washboilers, came to their ears. A few moments
later they found themselves at the beginning of the bazaars of the city.
The sounds they had heard came from the coppersmith's street, where
hundreds of skillful laborers were at work on brass, beating and molding
it in to all sorts of shapes. They were making bowls, trays, and dishes,
such as may be seen on sale in any genuine Oriental store.
It was very interesting to watch these laborers, and their skill was
something to marvel at.
They wandered on through bazaar after bazaar, their interest and
wonderment increasing.
One bazaar was filled with pipes and smoking paraphernalia of every
description. There were pipes mounted with gold and silver, and some
were decorated with precious stones.
Then came the leather shops, the cloth store, the curio shops, the place
of odd and ancient weapons, the goldsmith's bazaar, and, most
fascinating of all, the Street of the Greeks. In the latter place were
to be seen all sorts of Oriental articles and ornaments, embroideries,
rugs, carpets, silks, clothing, armors, weapons, pipes, gems, coins,
fezzes.
They were besieged by Armenians, Greeks, and Jews, all anxious and eager
to sell them goods. Only the Turks sat back in dignified silence and
declined to solicit trade. Some of the dealers were offensive in their
insistence. They pulled Nadia and held articles before her for
inspection, dilating on the merits of the goods. They named prices and
then asked for offers.
Budthorne became confused and Professor Gunn grew angry. Dick was
compelled to look after Nadia. She clung to his arm.
In this manner they came face to face with Brad Buckhart, who was
wandering through the bazaars alone.
Nadia gave a little cry.
"There's Brad!"
He turned like a flash and disappeared amid a mass of people who were
crowding before one of the booths.
"Oh, Brad!" called Dick.
"Why, what made him do that?" exclaimed the girl, in dismay.
Merriwell was provoked.
"Come!" he urged. "He can't get away. We'll find him."
They hurried after the Texan. Dick caught a glimpse of him leaving the
bazaars. Nadia was still clinging to Dick's arm.
At the beginning of a narrow street Buckhart paused and glanced back,
then he turned and disappeared down the street.
Never had Dick known his friend to behave in such a perplexing manner.
"I'll shake some of the foolishness out of him if I ever get my hands on
him," Merriwell mentally vowed.
Thinking they would have no trouble in returning to the bazaars and
finding the professor and Dunbar, they hastened down the narrow street.
Turning a corner, they came against a caravan of loaded camels in a most
sudden and startling manner. It was necessary to hug the wall in order
to let the animals and their drivers pass.
There were many dogs in the streets. These animals prowled about or
slept serenely beneath the feet of pedestrians, who were careful to step
over them or to turn out and go round without disturbing them.
As in Constantinople, the dogs were the street cleaners, and no one
harmed them.
After following the crooked street some distance and failing to again
catch a glimpse of Buckhart, Dick decided they had better turn back.
"I don't know how we could have missed him," he said.
"He may have turned onto another street."
"I saw no other street."
"I did."
Retracing their steps, they came upon a street that was like a choked
alley. Nadia believed they could return to the bazaars more quickly by
taking it.
But when they had followed it into still another street, and turned from
this into yet another, she confessed that she was bewildered and knew
not which course should be pursued.
Then Dick set out to make his way back as quickly as possible, the girl
relying wholly on his judgment. They seemed entangled in a network of
very crooked and very bewildering streets.
Again they were suddenly confronted by a number of loaded camels. The
one in advance was heavily loaded, his pack being so broad that it
nearly touched the walls on either side. The beast came swinging on.
Nadia uttered a cry of alarm and turned to run. She fled up some steps
and disappeared within an open doorway.
Dick gave a gasp of dismay as he followed her, for he saw she had
entered a Moslem temple, and he knew such an intrusion might produce an
uproar.
He sprang up the steps. Even as he did so, he heard sudden shouts of
alarm and anger coming from within the temple.
Then Nadia reappeared, looking rather startled and agitated.
"Goodness!" she gasped. "I almost ran right onto a lot of monks at their
devotions!"
The camels were swinging past.
"We must get away from here in a hurry!" exclaimed Dick.
Even as he uttered the words several priests came hurrying to the open
door of the temple. They saw Nadia. One of them pointed at her and
shouted to his companions. Then the whole of them moved again, as if
eager to lay hands on her.
"Here's trouble!" muttered Dick, feeling for his pistol.
"Don't let them touch me!" gasped Nadia.
The head priest called to some of the men of the train that was passing.
Several of these men, swarthy and villainous in appearance, halted in
answer to this call. The words of the priest seemed to arouse them. They
glared at the girl and started to mount the steps.
Out flashed Merriwell's pistol.
"Hold on, you dogs!" he commanded, displaying the weapon. "Stop where
you are! Back up, or I'll have to damage some of you!"
The sight of that pistol caused the foremost among them to retreat
precipitately.
But Dick and Nadia were caught between two fires, as it were. The angry
priests were behind them, while a number of savage men were in front.
The American boy knew he must lose not a moment in changing his
position.
Grasping Nadia's wrist, he hurried down the steps and attempted to flee
along the street.
Another shout from the priests caused several of the fierce-looking men
to place themselves before Dick and the girl. Although Merriwell
threatened to shoot, they would not let him pass.
Merriwell looked round for some place where he could hold off the
fanatical Moslems. He was forced to retreat against the nearest wall.
Supporting Nadia with one arm, he lifted his pistol and fearlessly faced
the howling crowd, which now began to close about them in a half circle,
urged on by the priests.
"Death to the infidels!" howled the crowd.
They shook their fists at the boy and girl. Those behind tried to urge
on those in advance. One old Turk spat at Dick.
Young Merriwell realized the seriousness of his position. He was pale,
but his nerves remained steady and unshaken.
"Come on!" he cried clearly. "I'll fill some of you with lead!"
Suddenly the crowd parted. A man forced his way through, pushing other
men to the right and left. As he advanced he drew a gleaming sword, the
hilt of which was set with jewels.
The crowd seemed to think this man, who was an Arab of rank and
distinction, judging by his dress, meant to attack the boy, and they
uttered shouts of approval, urging him to run the "infidel dog" through.
Dick had turned his pistol on the man with the sword, but he hesitated.
"It is Ras al Had!" he exclaimed, in surprise.