After a time the girl awoke. For a few minutes she could not assure
herself of the reality of her surroundings. She thought that this was
but another of her dreams. Gently she put out her hand and touched
the face of the sleeper. It was very real. Also she noted that the
fever had left. She sat in silence for a few minutes attempting to
adjust herself to the new and strange conditions which surrounded her.
She seemed to be two people--the American girl, Victoria Custer, and
Nat-ul; but who or from where was Nat-ul she could not fathom, other
than that she was beloved by Nu and that she returned his love.
She wondered that she did not regret the life of ease she had
abandoned, and which she knew that she could never again return to. She
was still sufficiently of the twentieth century to realize that the
step she had taken must cut her off forever from her past life--yet
she was very happy. Bending low over the man she kissed his lips, and
then rising went outside, and calling Terkoz with her descended to the
spring, for she was thirsty.
Neither the girl nor the hound saw the white robed figure that withdrew
suddenly behind a huge boulder as the two emerged from the cave's
mouth. Nor did they see him signal to others behind him who had not yet
rounded the shoulder of the cliff at the base of which they had been
marching.
Victoria stooped to fill her hat at the spring. First she leaned far
down to quench her own thirst. A sudden, warning growl from Terkoz
brought her head up, and there, not ten paces from her, she saw a dozen
white robed Arabs, and behind them half a hundred blacks. All were
armed--evil looking fellows they were, and one of the Arabs had covered
her with his long gun.
Now he spoke to her, but in a tongue she did not understand, though
she knew that his message was unfriendly, and imagined that it warned
her not to attempt to use her own rifle which lay beside her. Next he
spoke to those behind him and two of them approached the girl, one from
either side, while the leader continued to keep his piece leveled at
her.
As the two came toward her she heard a menacing growl from the
wolfhound, and then saw him leap for the nearest Arab. The fellow
clubbed his gun and swung it full upon Terkoz's skull, so that the
faithful hound collapsed in a silent heap at their feet. Then the two
rushed in and seized Victoria's rifle, and a moment later she was
roughly dragged toward the leader of the ill-favored gang.
Through one of the blacks, a West Coast negro who had picked up a
smattering of pidgin English, the leader questioned the girl, and when
he found that she was a guest of Lord Greystoke an ugly grin crossed
his evil face, for the fellow recalled what had befallen another Arab
slave and ivory caravan at the hands of the Englishman and his Waziri
warriors. Here was an opportunity for partial revenge. He motioned for
his followers to bring her along--there was no time to tarry in this
country of their enemies into which they had accidentally stumbled
after being lost in the jungle for the better part of a month.
Victoria asked what their intentions toward her were; but all that she
could learn was that they would take her north with them. She offered
to arrange the payment of a suitable ransom if they would return her
to her friends unharmed, but the Arab only laughed at her.
"You will bring a good price," he said, "at the court of the sultan of
Fulad, north of Tagwara, and for the rest I shall have partly settled
the score which I have against the Englishman," and so Victoria Custer
disappeared from the sight of men at the border of the savage land of
the Waziri nor was there any other than her captors to know the devious
route that they followed to gain the country north of Uziri.
* * * * *
When at last Nu, the son of Nu, opened his eyes from the deep slumber
that had refreshed and invigorated him, he looked up expectantly for
the sweet face that had been hovering above his, and as he realized
that the cave was tenantless except for himself a sigh that was half a
sob broke from the depth of his lonely heart, for he knew that Nat-ul
had been with him only in his dreams.
Yet it had been so real! Even now he could feel the touch of her cool
hand upon his forehead, and her slim fingers running through his hair.
His cheek glowed to her hot kisses, and in his nostrils was the sweet
aroma of her dear presence. The disillusionment of his waking brought
with it bitter disappointment, and a return of the fever. Again Nu
lapsed into semi-consciousness and delirium, so that he was not aware
of the figure of the khaki clad white man that crept warily into the
half-darkness of his lair shortly after noon.
It was Barney Custer, and behind him came Curtiss, Butzow and a half
dozen others of the searching party. They had stumbled upon the half
dead Terkoz beside the spring, and there also they had found Victoria
Custer's hat, and plainly in the soft earth between the boulders of the
hillside they had seen the new made path to the cave higher up.
When Barney saw that the prostrate figure within the cavern did not
stir at his entrance a stifling fear rose in his throat, for he was
sure that he had found the dead body of his sister; but as his eyes
became more accustomed to the dim light of the interior he realized
his mistake--at first with a sense of infinite relief and later with
misgivings that amounted almost to a wish that it had been Victoria,
safe in death; for among the savage men of savage Africa there are
fates worse than death for women.
The others had crowded in beside him, and one had lighted a torch of
dry twigs which illuminated the interior of the cave brightly for a few
seconds. In that time they saw that the man was the only occupant and
that he was helpless from fever. Beside him lay the stone spear that
had slain "old Raffles"--each of them recognized it. How could it have
been brought to him?
"The zebra killer," said Brown. "What's that beneath his head? Looks
like a khaki coat."
Barney drew it out and held it up.
"God!" muttered Curtiss. "It's hers."
"He must 'ave come down there after we left, an' got his spear an'
stole your sister," said Brown.
Curtiss drew his revolver and pushed closer toward the unconscious Nu.
"The beast," he growled; "shootin's too damned good for him. Get out of
the way, Barney, I'm going to give him all six chambers."
"No," said Barney quietly.
"Why?" demanded Curtiss, trying to push past Custer.
"Because I don't believe that he harmed Victoria," replied Barney.
"That's sufficient reason for waiting until we know the truth. Then I
won't stand for the killing of an unconscious man anyway."
"He's nothing but a beast--a mad dog," insisted Curtiss. "He should
be killed for what he is. I'd never have thought to see you defending
the man who killed your sister--God alone knows what worse crime he
committed before he killed her."
"Don't be a fool, Curtiss," snapped Barney. "We don't even know that
Victoria's dead. The chances are that this man has been helpless from
fever for a long time. There's a wound in his head that was probably
made by your shot last night. If he recovers from that he may be able
to throw some light on Victoria's disappearance. If it develops that
he has harmed her I'm the one to demand an accounting--not you; but as
I said before I do not believe that this man would have harmed a hair
of my sister's head."
"What do you know about him?" demanded Curtiss.
"I never saw him before," replied Barney. "I don't know who he is or
where he came from; but I know--well, never mind what I know, except
that there isn't anybody going to kill him, other than Barney Custer."
"Custer's right," broke in Brown. "It would be murder to kill this
fellow in cold blood. You have jumped to the conclusion, Curtiss, that
Miss Custer is dead. If we let you kill this man we might be destroying
our best chance to locate and rescue her."
As they talked the gaunt figure of the wolfhound, Terkoz, crept into
the cave. He had not been killed by the Arab's blow, and a liberal
dose of cold water poured over his head had helped to hasten returning
consciousness. He nosed, whining, about the cavern as though in search
of Victoria. The men watched him in silence after Brown had said: "If
this man harmed Miss Custer and laid out Terkoz the beast'll be keen
for revenge. Watch him, and if Curtiss is right there won't any of us
have to avenge your sister--Terkoz'll take care of that. I know him."
"We'll leave it to Terkoz," said Barney confidently.
After the animal had made the complete rounds of the cave, sniffing at
every crack and crevice, he came to each of the watching men, nosing
them carefully. Then he walked directly to the side of the unconscious
Nu, licked his cheek, and lying down beside him rested his head upon
the man's breast so that his fierce, wolfish eyes were pointed straight
and watchful at the group of men opposite him.
"There," said Barney, leaning down and stroking the beast's head.
The hound whined up into his face; but when Curtiss approached he rose,
bristling, and standing across the body of Nu growled ominously at him.
"You'd better keep away from him, Curtiss," warned Brown. "He always
has had a strange way with him in his likes and dislikes, and he's a
mighty ugly customer to deal with when he's crossed. He's killed one
man already--a big Wamboli spearman who was stalking Greystoke up in
the north country last fall. Let's see if he's got it in for the rest
of us;" but one by one Terkoz suffered the others to approach Nu--only
Curtiss seemed to rouse his savage, protective instinct.
As they discussed their plans for the immediate future Nu opened his
eyes with a return of consciousness. At sight of the strange figures
about him he sat up and reached for his spear; but Barney had had the
foresight to remove this weapon as well as the man's knife and hatchet
from his reach.
As the cave man came to a sitting posture Barney laid a hand upon
his shoulder. "We shall not harm you," he said; "if you will tell us
what has become of my sister," and then placing his lips close to the
other's ear he whispered: "Where is Nat-ul?"
Nu understood but the single word, Nat-ul; but the friendly tone and
the hand upon his shoulder convinced him that this man was no enemy.
He shook his head negatively. "Nu does not understand the stranger's
tongue," he said. And then he asked the same question as had Barney:
"Where is Nat-ul?" But the American could translate only the name, yet
it told him that here indeed was the dream-man of his sister.
When it became quite evident that the man could not understand anything
that they said to him, and that he was in no condition to march, it was
decided to send him back to the ranch by some of the native carriers
that accompanied the searching party, while the others continued the
search for the missing girl.
Terkoz suffered them to lift Nu in their arms and carry him outside
where he was transferred to a rude litter constructed with a saddle
blanket and two spears belonging to the Waziri hunters who had
accompanied them.
Barney felt that this man might prove the key to the solution of
Victoria's whereabouts, and so for fear that he might attempt to escape
he decided to accompany him personally, knowing that the search for
his sister would proceed as thoroughly without him as with. In the
meantime he might be working out some plan whereby he could communicate
with the stranger.
And so they set out for the ranch. Four half-naked blacks bore the rude
stretcher. Upon one side walked Terkoz, the wolfhound, and upon the
other, Barney Custer. Four Waziri warriors accompanied them.