KORAKUM REACHED.
The Athensian’s lengthy conversation palpably had tired him, and Mr.
Hampton summoned Allola who had gone to the door of the tent to watch
the final stages of the Arabs’ preparations for departure, and ordered
her to prepare broth at once for Amrath. He also left with the latter
one of his precious bottles of brandy, advising him to sip it sparingly.
Good-byes were said, and he was on the point of departure. In fact,
already he had left the tent when Allola came running after him,
summoning him in dumb show to return.
“A bit of advice, monsieur,” said Amrath. “Your one opportunity to
intercept the party bearing away your son lies not in following their
trail. It will be circuitous in order to pass by three small water holes
in the desert of which we Athensians know. That is necessary because of
the horses. But you, with your camels, need not strike those water
holes. Take a supply of water in your water bottles, and strike due
south. The only way to enter the mountain wall is through the old stone
road leading into Korakum. There is another trail, which was destroyed
ages ago, and which we revolutionaries secretly have been rebuilding.
The spies set upon us recently may have reported that to the Athensian
authorities. But, doubtless, this party will take the easier route.
Therefore, I would advise you to seek the old road, which lies due south
of this oasis and enters the mountains by the only accessible pass.
“If you arrive in time, seek out Jepthah, Amonasis and Shilluk in
Korakum and with their aid make an ambush. That is all,” he concluded,
faintly, his exertions beginning to show on him. He clasped Mr.
Hampton’s outstretched hand and pressed it to his forehead. “Believe me,
monsieur,” he said, “I am not ungrateful. Amrath wishes you well. And,
who knows? Together we may yet bring happiness to my backward country.”
Making a mental note of the directions given and especially of the names
of the three friendly exiles of Korakum now twice repeated, Mr. Hampton
bade Amrath farewell. Drawing Allola with him, he ordered Ali to lay
upon her the strictest injunctions for looking after the Athensian’s
welfare, stating the man was a friend. Further, he advised her that
should he fail to return she was to give Amrath on his recovery the
documents left in her possession and destined for the Cairo bankers,
feeling assured the Athensian would deliver them.
Everything now being ready and Frank and Jack especially being wild to
start, the party set out. Amrath’s advice was repeated to Ali, who
nodded agreement.
“That is good sense,” he declared. “If we followed the trail, as your
man says, we might and probably would be too late. They would escape on
their fleeter horses. But by shortening the distance to the mountains,
we may arrive ahead of the raiders.”
Day after day the party now pushed on south into the desert, resting two
hours in the hottest part of the day but making up for the delay by
riding far into the cooler night. The camels were pushed almost to the
limit of endurance.
Daily the Shaitun Mountains loomed larger on the southern horizon. A
sharp lookout was kept for sight of other travellers, but none was seen.
Except for the gray shape of an occasional jackal scuttling off through
the bush into his sand burrow, or a herd of ostrich seen at a distance,
nothing alive appeared in that vast waste of sand dunes and stunted
bush. No trees broke the horizon, once the oasis of Aiz-Or had been left
behind.
This failure to sight the raiders carrying Bob into captivity was
variously interpreted by members of the party. Mr. Hampton and Ali,
older and less optimistic than the boys, were inclined to believe it
meant that the raiders had too great a lead, due to their several hours’
start and their swifter mounts, and had completely outdistanced them.
Jack and Frank, on the contrary, scorned this interpretation. To them
the absence of any sight of the raiders meant that the route the others
followed was so circuitous as to be completely below the horizon and
that, accordingly, the chance of reaching the mountains in advance of
the raiders was good.
“And, believe me,” said Frank, during the course of one discussion,
“when we spring our ambush, if they show any signs of resistance, I’ll
have no compunctions about shooting.”
“Same here,” said Jack. “For once in my life I’ll shoot at human beings
without a qualm. The bloody scoundrels. Carrying off old Bob to make a
Roman holiday for ’em. Either he’d be killed in one of their single
combats, or, if he won, he’d be fattened up for a year and then
sacrificed to their idols. Brr.”
Mr. Hampton nodded.
“I agree with you boys,” he said, quietly. “If we get the opportunity,
we must not throw it away through faint-heartedness or misplaced
kindness. These Sacrificial Games of which Amrath spoke constitute a
bloody rite which is out of tune with modern times. The idea of Bob
being compelled to fight for his life, without any real chance of
winning, even if he conquers all others, makes me shudder.”
Jack and Frank were silent a long time, filled with oppressive thoughts.
Yet in the end, a grim smile spread over Frank’s face and he appealed to
his comrade with:
“Just the same, Jack, it would be a great sight to see old Bob doing the
gladiator. He’s an expert fencer, wrestler and boxer. Let them arm him
as they will, he’ll put up a real battle. I wouldn’t be surprised if he
beat all contenders.”
“You bloody-minded barbarian,” said Jack. “I believe you’d like to see
such a contest.”
“Well,” said Frank, “if it can’t be avoided, I want a ringside seat,
that’s all.”
Mr. Hampton’s lips twitched, although he shook his head in deprecation.
Youth must be served, he knew well. The delight of the three young men
in sports always had seemed to him wholesome and worth while. From their
earliest knee-pants days he had encouraged them in all sorts of athletic
exercises. They swam like water dogs, ran like Mercuries, fenced like
D’Artagnan, and as non-professional boxers and wrestlers stood high. But
of them all, Bob was the most expert boxer and wrestler, due in a
measure to his greater physical strength, while, as Frank had said, he
was no mean hand with the foils. Should he be pitted with sword and
shield against almost any warrior, he would give a good account of
himself.
Frequently, these rest-period discussions turned on the question of what
should be done if they failed to intercept the raiders and effect Bob’s
rescue, as well as on what plan to follow if the small raiding party
joined hands with a larger Athensian force.
Mr. Hampton was of the opinion that the latter contingency was quite
likely to arise. Apparently, secure in their sense of isolation, the
Athensians had not maintained outer guards of their mountain land at the
time Professor Souchard first arrived at Korakum. Otherwise, it would
not have been possible for him to escape. But that now such a guard was
maintained seemed to Mr. Hampton more than likely.
Against this assumption, however, Jack argued with great good sense that
Amrath would have been aware of such a guard, and would not have advised
them to attempt to enter Korakum and seek out his comrades had a guard
existed.
The only plan they could reach for use in case of attack by superior
number was to compel the camels to kneel in a circle and from the
interior of such a fort of living flesh put up the best fight possible.
With their repeating rifles and plenty of ammunition, it was possible
they could inflict such damage as to compel the withdrawal of the enemy.
If not, well——
“If old Bob has got to go, I’d just as soon go with him,” said Frank.
Jack nodded solemnly.
As for the Arabs, said Ali:
“When we die in battle, we are sure of Paradise. The Prophet so
promised.”
In case they failed to intercept the raiders and rescue Bob, Mr. Hampton
planned to hunt out first the Korakum exiles whose names had been given
him by Amrath, and whom he took to be leaders of the revolutionaries. It
was possibly that they could be induced to aid in some plan for stealing
Bob from Athensi before the holding of the Sacrificial Games, which
Amrath had said were six weeks away. Failing to gain such aid, Mr.
Hampton believed it possible the exiles might at least supply
information which would enable them alone to penetrate the enemy’s
stronghold and try to rescue Bob. For to this course, Jack and Frank had
declared openly they would commit themselves, come what would.
And Mr. Hampton knew it was useless to try to dissuade them. Both were
of age and, although guided by him ordinarily, in this matter they would
act as they saw fit. Either they would rescue Bob or die in the attempt.
The bond of union between the three inseparables was so sure and firm
that Mr. Hampton would not attempt to go against it, even though it
might mean the loss of his own son. As a matter of fact, he himself was
equally determined to go the limit in attempting to rescue Bob.
As matters fell out, they were enabled to make the last march bringing
them to the Shaitun Mountains entirely under cover of darkness. By
saving their camels the latter half of the day, they covered the
remaining distance at night, and arrived at the pass—plainly discerned
through Mr. Hampton’s night glasses—in the early morning hours, before
the sun was up.
Should they enter and hunt cover, or reconnoitre the mountain wall to
either side first? This question had been left until the last moment for
decision, as naturally the lay of the land would influence them.
On arrival, so gradually did the great stone road rise out of the sand
and pierce the mountain pass, with bare steep walls on either side,
devoid of verdure, that Mr. Hampton believed it was safe enough to push
ahead. On those great rocky slopes, where the levelling process of
Nature had been assisted by man in that dim age when the road first was
built, by no possibility could men lie hidden. At this point they could
neither ambush nor be ambushed.
Before proceeding, however, the sand was inspected by Arabs afoot for
any signs that would indicate the recent entrance of horsemen into the
pass. None was found. Then the marks left by the scouts were carefully
obliterated.
For a considerable distance, as they approached the pass, the camels
were made to walk in single file, and two Arabs, walking backward at the
rear of the procession, smoothed out all signs of their passage. In
broad sunlight, anyone hunting for a trail, would find it. But to a
cursory glance it would remain invisible.
Satisfied that everything possible had been done to prevent the raiders
whom he now felt assured had not yet entered the pass, from discovering
he was ahead of them, Mr. Hampton ordered the party to proceed
cautiously along the great stone road.