| Show of the w keyber khyber A romance of adventure by TALBOT MUNDY by the bobbt company KING SEES yasmine FOR THE FIRST TIME WHEN SHE COMES TO DANCE BEFORE THE THOUSANDS OF WARRIORS ASSEMBLED IN THE CAVERN synopsis at the beginning of the world war capt athelstan king of the british indian army and of its secret service Is ordered to delhi to meet a dancer and goes with her to to meet the outlaws there who are said by spies to be preparing tor a jihad or holy war on his way to delhi king quietly foils a plan to assassinate him and gets evidence that Is after him he meets elewa bunga s man who says she has already gone north and at her town house witnesses queer dances ismall an becomes his body servant and protector lie rescues some of s hallmen and takes them north with him tricking the hangar into going ahead the bangar iS eserts him at a dangerous time he meets his brother at all fort the disguise he assumes there fools even the sharp eyed cutthroats cut throats composing his guard he enters caes thanks to bis lying guides and at a clinic bears of an impending revolt led by bull with a beard and goes to a meeting in the cavern CHAPTER XI 1 continued aye I 1 the liar says the germans gave it to him lie swears they will send more who are the germans who Is a man who talks of a jihad that Is to be that he should have gold coin riven him by un believers I 1 saw a german once at he ate pig meat and washed it down with wine are such men sons of the prophet walt and watch lay II 11 money said ring and should DO more money come this was courteous conversation and received as such many a long league curiosity who am I 1 to foretell a mans als met I 1 know what I 1 know and I 1 think what I 1 think t I 1 know thee hakim tor a gentle fellow who hurt me almost not at all in the drawing of a bullet out of my flesh what thou about me that I 1 will dress the wound for thee again 1 artless statements are as useful in their way as artless questions let the guile lie deep that is all nay nay for she said nay shall I 1 tall foul of her for tie sake of a new bandage the temptation was terrific to nik why she bad given that order but king resisted it and presently it occurred to the that his own theories on the subject might be of interest she will use thee for a reward he eald he who shall win and keep her A wretched looking was thrust forward at a run with arms lashed to his sides favor may have bis hurts dressed and his belly dosed iier enemies may rot does she call the mullah mad ahlm enemy king asked him nay she never mentions him by name CHAPTER XIII the dance went on tor fifteen aln utes yet but then quite unexpectedly all the arena guards together fired n volley at the roof and the dance stopped as if every dancer had been hit panting foaming at the mouth some of them the dancers ran to their and set the crowd surging again lending the arena empty of all but the guards biow a man stood up near the edge of the crowd whom king recognized recognised and recognition brought no joy with it the mullah without hair or who had admitted him and his parn through the mosque into the caves strode out to the middle of the arena nil alone strutting and swaggering he recalled the mang last words and drew no from them either many have entered t some went out by a different cold chills went down his back all nt once ismall s manner became lie ceased to make a fusa over the dancer and began to eye king until at last he seemed un e able to c the malice that would 7 well forth at the rate warp only words he whispered here in this cavern men wait tor proof I 1 he licked his teeth suggestively as a wolf does when he contemplates a meal then as an afterthought as though ashamed 1 I love thou art a man after my ow n heart 1 but I 1 am her min 1 walt and see I 1 the mullah in the arena blinking with his eyes held both arms up for silence in the attitude of n christian priest blessing a congregation the great cavern grew still and only the river could be heard sucking hungrily between the smooth stone banks god Is great I 1 the mullah howled the crowd thundered in echo to him and then the vault took up the echoes and muhammad Is his prophet 1 howled the mullah instantly they an him again ills prophet Is his prophet Is ills prophet 1 said the stalactites in loud barks then in murmurs then in awe struck whimpers that seemed to be all the religious ritual remembered or could tolerate considering that the mullah too must have killed his man in cold blood before earning the right to be there perli aps it was enough too much there were men not far from king who shuddered there are strangers I 1 announced the mullah as a man might say 1 I smell a catl but he did not look at anybody in particular he blinked at the crowd bring them he shouted and king suppressed a shudder for what proof had he of right to be there beyond Is malls verbal corroboration of a lie would ismall lie for him again he wondered and if so would the lie be any use not far from where king sat there was an immediate disturbance in the crowd and a wretched looking was thrust forward at a run with arms lashed to his sides and a pitiful look of terror on his face two more ba luchas were hustled along after him protesting a little but looking almost as hopeless once in the arena the guards took charge of all three of them and lined them up facing the mullah clubbing them with their rifle butts to get quick er obedience the crowd began to be noisy again but the mullah signed for allence these are traitors tw he bowled and his voice was like a wolfs at bunting time hear and be warned I 1 the crowd grew very still but king saw that some men licked their lips as it they well knew what was coming these three men came and one wis w is a new man the mullah hoika the other two ft ere his witnesses 1 all three swore that the first mail cime from slaying an unbeliever in the teeth of written law they said he rin from the law so as the custom Is I 1 let all three enter good said the crowd goedl they might have been five thousand judges judging in equity so grave they were let they licked their lips but later word came to me saying they are liars so again as the cus torn ts I 1 ordered them bound and held I 1 docs any speak for them speak for them said the roof there was silence then there was a murmur of astonishment over opposite to where king sat the mullah stood up who the had said was bull with a beard muhammad ahlm the men are elnel he growled nis voice was like a bears at bay it was low but it c urica strangely and as he he sung his great head between his shoulders like a bear that means to chance the proof they brought hns IKUI stolen 1 they hid good proof I 1 I 1 speak for them the men are mine I 1 ahe nudged king in the ribs with an elbow ille a club and tickled his ear with hot breath bull with a beard speaks truth f he grinned truth and a lie together t good may it do him and them 1 they die they three proof 1 howled the mullah who had no hair or eyelashes proof 1 show us proof I 1 yelled the crowd the next king leaned over to whisper to him again but stiffened in the act there was a great gasp the same instant as the whole crowd caught its breath all together the mullah in the middle froze into immobility bull with a beard stood mumbling sw ayling his great head from side to side no longer suggestive of a bear about to charge but of one who hesitates the crowd was staring at the end of the bridge king stared too and caught his own breath for stood there smiling on them all as the new moon smiles down on the keyber khyber t she had come among them like a spirit all unheralded so much more beautiful than the one likeness king had seen of her that for a second be doubted who she was she stood there human and warm and real who had begun to seem a myth clad in gauzy silk transparent stuff that made no secret of sylphlike ness and looking nearly light enough to blow away her feet and they were the most marvelously molded things he had ever seen were naked and played restlessly on the naked stone tot one part of her was still for a fraction of a second vet the whole ef feet was of insolently lazy ease ner eyes blazed brighter than the little jewels stitched to her gossamer dress and when a man once looked at them he did not find it easy to look away again even mullah muhammad ahlm seemed transfixed like a great foolish animal but king was staring very bard in deed at something else mentally cursing the plain glass spectacles he wore that hid begun to film over and dim bis vision there were two bracelets on hec arm both barbaric things of solid gold lad smaller of the two was on her wrist and the larger on her upper arm but they were so alike ex copt for size and so exactly like the one rewa bunga bad given him in her name and that had been stolen from him in the night that he ran the risk of removing the glasses a moment to stare with unimpeded eyes even then the distance was too great ho could not quite see but her eye began to search the crowd in his direction and then he knew two things absolutely he was sitting where she had ordered ismall to place him for she picked him out almost instantly and laughed as if somebody had struck a silver bell and one of those bracelets was the one that he had worn for she flaunted it at him moving her arm so that the light should mal e the gold glitter then perhaps because the crowd had begun to whisper and she w anted all attention she raised both arms to toss back the golden hair that came cascading nearly to her knees and as it the crowd knew thit symptom well it drew its breath in sharply and grew veo still muhammad she said and she might have been wooing him that was a devils trick 1 it was rather an astounding statement coming from lovely lips in such a setting it was rather suggestive of n driver s flicked through the air for a beginning Mu hammid ahlm continued glaring and did not answer her so in her own good time when she hod tossed her golden hair back once or twice again she developed her meaning we who are free of caves do not send men out to bring recruits we 1 now better than to bid our men tell lies for others at the gate nor seeking proof for our new recruit do we send men to hunt n head for him not even those of ua who have n anh that wo call conr on mullah mu hammad ahlm I 1 each of us earns his own dav in 1 the mullah muhammad ahlm began to stroke his beard but be made no an awer and mullah muhammad ahlm thou wandering man of god when that lashkar has foolishly been sent and has failed Is it written in the kala mullah saying we should pretend there was a head and that the head was stolen A lie Is a lie muhammad ahlm wandering perhaps ts good it in search of the way Is it good to lose the w ay and to lie thou true follower of the prophet she smiled tossing her hair back ner eyes challenged her lips mocked him and her chin scorned the crowd breathed bard and watched the mul lah muttered something in his beard and sat down and the crowd began to roar applause at her but she checked it with a regal gesture and a glance of contempt at the mullah that was alone worth a journey across the hills to see guards I 1 she said quietly and the crowd s sigh then was like the night wind in a forest away with those three of mad anlas men I 1 twelve of the arena guards threw down their shields with a sudden clatter and seized the prisoners four to each the crowd shivered with delicious anticipation the doomed men neither struggled nor cried for fatalism Is an anodyne as well as an explosive king set his teeth with both hands behind her head continued to smile down on them all as sweetly as the stars shine on a battlefield she once and then all was over in a minute with a ringing ho I 1 and a run the guards lifted their victims shoulder high and bore them forward at the river bank they paused or a second to swing them then with another hol they threw them like dead rubbish into the swift black water there was only one wild scream that went echoing and re echoing to the roof there was scarcely a splash and no extra ripple at all no heads came up again to gasp no fingers clutched at the surface the fearful speed 0 the river eucled them under to grind and chum and pound them through long caverns underground and burl them at last over the great cataract toward the middle of the world sighed tho crowd in ecstasy Is there no other stranger asked searching for king again with her amazing eyes the skin all down his back turned there and then into gooseflesh goose flesh and as her eyes met his she laughed like a bell at him she anew 1 she knew who he was how be had entered and how he felt not a doubt 0 it I 1 CHAPTER XIV curram khan 1 the mullah howled like a lone wolf in the moon light and king stood up in that grim minute he managed to seem about as much at ease as a native hakim ought to feel at such an initiation come forward t the mullah bowled and he obeyed treading gingerly between men who were at no pains to let him by and silently blessing them because he was not really in any hurry at all looked lovely from a distance and life was sweet who are his witnesses 1 I shouted ismall jumping up H cracked the roof 11 II II 11 so that for a second king almost believed he had a crowd of men to swear for him and did not hear darya khan at all w ho rose from a place not very far behind where he had sat ismall followed him in a hurry ille a man wading a river with loose clothes gathered in one arm and the other arm ready in case of falling darya khan did not go so fast As he forced his way forward a man passed him up the wooden box that king had used to stand on he seized it in both hands with a grin and a jest and went to stand behind king and ismall in line with the mullah facing smiled at them all as it they were actors in her comedy and she well pleased with them look yel howled the mullah look ye and look well for this Is to be one of us 1 king felt ten thousand eyes burn holes in bis back but the one pair of eyes that mocked him from the bridge was more disconcerting turn curram khan I 1 turn that all may see I 1 feeling like a man on n spit he revolved slowly by the time he had turned once completely around he had decided that meant he should be frightened but not much hurt just yet so he ceased altogether to feel frightened and took care to look more scared than ever speak curram khael purred smiling her loveliest tell them whom you slew king turned and faced the crowd raising himself on the balls of his feet to shout like a man facing thousands of troops on parade he nearly gave himself away for bialt had him un A native hakim given the stoutest lungs in all india would not have feh in that may Attley stan kingl he roared and he nearly jumped out of skin when his own voice came rattling back at him from the roof overhead chuckled as a little rill will sometimes chuckle among terns it was devilish it seemed to say there were traps not far ahead here was he slain asked the mullah in the keyber khyber pass said king now give proof 1 said the mullah words at the gate proof in the cavern I 1 without good proof there Is only one way out of beret fl the crowd thundered proof I 1 the root echoed there was no need for darya khan to whisper king s hands were behind him and he had een what he had seen and guessed w hat be had guessed while lie was turning to let the crowd look at him his fingers closed on human hilr h nay it Is short 1 hissed darya khin kh in two ears or bold it I 1 v the jawbone 1 hold it high in both hinds I 1 king obeyed without looking at the tiling and ismall turning to face the crow d rose on tiptoe and filled his lungs for the effort of his life the head of Attley stan kang kaffar british arifi 1 he howled good 1 the crowd bellowed good I 1 throw it t the crowds roar and the roofs combined in pandemonium throw it to them kurrie khael purred fioti tho na as softly and ns cwi etly us it she coaxed a child it Is the custom 1 throw it |
