Show I King of oE tIme the Khyber Rifles o the Bobbt Company A Story That Combines the Thrill of o Modem Modern Detective Fiction With the Romance of Arabian Nights Tales i ern er Ii ace M M. M M. r. S SI flanks anks neat AND THE OTHERS COMPOSING KINGS KING'S J GUARD DISCOVER THE CLEVERNESS OF HIS DISGUISE 1 THEY ARE FIRST PUZZLED THEN DELIGHTED Synopsis At At the h limning 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 go with her to to meet the outlaws there who ho are arc said by spies to be preparing for tor a n jihad or holy war On his way to Delhi King quietly foils tolls a plan to assassinate him and gets evidence that Is after him He meets Rewa Yasmin's man who says she has has' already gone north and at her town house witnesses queer dances Ismail an Afridi becomes be be- becomes comeS comes his body servant and protector He rescues some of hillmen and takes them north with him tricking the Hangar Into going ahead The Hangar deserts him at a dangerous time He meets his brother at nt All fort CHAPTER VIII VIII Continued 5 The packs were laid on the ground and the ilie mules shook themselves while the jackals that haunt the Khyber r came closer to sit in a ring and watch King dug a flashlight out of one of the packs gave it to Ismail to hold sat on the other pack and began to write on a n. memorandum pad It was a minute before he could persuade Ismail Ismall that the flashlight was harmless harmless harm harm- less and another minute before he could get him to hold It still Then however he wrote swiftly In tho Khyber a a. mile below you Dear Old Man I Man I would like to run In Inand Inand and see you but circumstances dont don't permit Several people sent your their regards by me Herewith go two mules and their packs Make Mahe e any use of the mules you ou like but store tho the loads where I can draw on them In case of ot need I would like to have ha a a. talk with you before taking the rather desperate step I Intend intend In- In tend but I dont don't want to be seen enterIng enterIng enterIng enter- enter Ing or leaving AH AU Can you come comedown comedown comedown down the pass without making your In Intention Intention In In- known It Is growing misty now It ought to be easy My men will tell teU you where I am and show you tho the way Why not destroy this letter letter Ietter Athelstan He f folded the note not and stuck a postage postage post post- age stamp on it In lieu of a seal Then I he examined the packs with the aid of or orthe the flashlight sorted them and ordered two of the mules reloaded I f. f You three I 1 he ordered then Take the loaded mules Into All fort a Take this chit you Give It to the sahib in command there To hear is to obey 1 said the near near- nearest eseman est man They took the mules' mules leading reins and before they had gone ten p paces ces were swallowed in the mist that had begun to flow southeastward The night grew still except for the whimpering whimpering whim whim- Jp ring of Jackals Ismail Ismall came nearer and squatted at Kl Kings King's gs g's feet Darya Khan came closer too King King had bad tied the reins of the two horses and the one remaining mule together r In n a knot and was sitting sit sit- ting Ling on the pack Solemn almost motionless squatted on their hunkers bunkers they looked like two great vultures watching an animal die They sat in silence for five minutes shuddered shuddered Then suddenly the two dered although King did not bat an eyelid Din burst Into being A volley ripped out of the night and thundered down the pass How dar came the Insolent challenge half halt a minute 1 after It the It-the the proof positive that All Ali nor were r guards neither slept If t afraid A weird wall wail answered the tho challenge challenge chal lenge and there began a tossing to and that was prelude to a ap fro of words p Y shouted invitation rte f Ud vance Ud vance r. r fk English can be as weirdly distorted p as wire or any other supple medium to J and native levies advance distortion the point of art but the language sounds no less good in the chilly gloom of a Khyber night Followed another wait walt this time of or mans man's footsteps foot toot Then a hour half f an i 7 a p booted leather-heeled leather man st steps a a f r striding carelessly Not far tar behind him noise of ot sandals The Theman Theman was was the softer man began to whistle Annie Laurie Laurie e Charles That you ca called ed King Bing k That you old man yo A A Aman man in khaki stepp stepped Into the 4 moonlight He was so nearly the im im- image King that Ismail and age of Athelstan stood up and stared Dan Darva Khan l' l A i elstan n strode to meet him Their n. n r Angle for angle i walk was the same line they might have haye c been one t. t line for for tor three- three man and his shadow e except 1 quarters of an inch of stature Glad to se see you old man said A Athelstan li f v said Charles and Sure old chap 1 l' l ure they shook hands the tho tho desperate propos proposal an JY A asked the younger I Ill Ill tell you when we are arc alone nodded and Stood a step stepaside Sis His is brother who had taken the three The aside t I rote note te to the fort tort came partly closer to n to themselves partly to ca call all l attention f claim dalm credit rc partly because the outer outers outers' They elbowed them f frightened rl a s' s silence Jr of or Khan Klan and one Darya i Ismail l I blow In the they savage vage them re ed a Ismall Ismail ot of retort from y stomach by could start an ex ex- th spark lj Before Au A tan an interfered Go down TaKe two med meu r Ismall I earshot and keep of t ont ant antof back when I whistle watch Come no po sooner I 1 but hut Thus He put fingers between his teeth and blew until the night shrilled back at him Ismail seized the leather bag and started to obey Leave that bag Leave it I say I But some man may steal it sahib How shall a thief know there Is no money in it IU Leave it and go 1 I Ismail departed grumbling and King Bing turned on Darya Khan Take the remaining men and go up the he pass l 1 he be ordered Stand out of earshot and keep watch Come when I whistle 1 But this one has a bellyache where Ismail smote him I Can a man with a bellyache stand guard His rus moaning will betray both him and me I I objected objected ob ob- ob Lord of the Rivers Take him and go I l commanded King But But King was careful now not to show his ils bracelet But there was something In n his eye and in his attitude attitude-a a subtle suggestive or something other other I about him that hIm that was rather more convIncing convincing convincing con con- I than a pistol or a stick Darya i Khan thrust his rifles rifle's end Into the hurt hurtman's hurtman's I mans man's stomach for encouragement and started off oft In the mist Come and ache out of the of-the the sahibs sahibs' i sight t I he snarled In a minute King and his b brother other stood unseen unheard In Inthe the shadow by a patch of silver moonlight Athelstan Athelstan Athel Athel- stan sat down on the mules mule's pack I Well Vell Fell said the younger Tell me I I r shall have to hurry You see Im I'm In charge back there They saw me come out but I hope to teach em a lesson going back Athelstan nodded Good 1 I he said Ive a It roving commission Im I'm ordered ordered or or- dered to enter caves His brother whistled Tall order I t your plan one one yet Know Snow more when Im I'm nearer You can cnn help no end How Name it IU 1 I III shall go In disguise Nobody can put the stain on as well as you But Butell Buttell Buttell tell ell me something first Any news of a holy war yet His ills brother nodded Plenty of or talk about one to come he said We Ve keep hearing of or that lashkar that we cant can't locate under a mullah whose name seems to change with the day of or orthe the week And there are everlasting tales about the Heart of ot the Hills Athelstan No explanation of ot em fem asked him None 1 Not a thing 1 I know of ot t Heard eard of at h her r of course said his brother Has she come up the pass ills His br brother ther laughed No N neither she nor a coach and four I have heard she's up the pass ah ahead ad of me said Athelstan She hasn't passed All 1 l said his brother and Athelstan nodded Are tho the Turks in the show yet asked Charles Not yet But I know they're expected expected expected ex ex- in You bet they're expected in ml I The young man grinned from ear to ear working both tides under to prepare the tribes for It They flutter flatter themselves they can set alight a holy I war that will put Bang Dang to I shame You should hear my talk at night when they think Im I'm not listening I 1 The Je stand though I said Athelstan Stake my life Ufe on It 1 said his Ms brother stick sOck to the last man I IlOr 1 I II I lOr cant can't tell you said Athelstan why were we're not attacking brother Turk i urk before hes he's ready But my Job Is t to help belp make the holy war seem unprofitable t. t able to the tribes so 50 that mat hc 1 let the Turk down hard when he calls calIs on cm em E Every ery day that I can point to forts lorts h held d strongly in the Khyber is a aday aday day In my favor There are sure to tobe tobe tobe be raids In fact the more the merrier provided they're spasmodic We must keep em separated separated keep keep em swarmIng swarmIng swarming swarm- swarm Ing too fast while fast while I sow other seeds among em cm HI His Hla brother nodded T r Sowing seeds was almost that family's hereditary job Athelstan continued Hang Bong on to All AU like a leech old man I 1 The day one raiding lashkar lashkar lash lash- kar kur gets command of ot the ih Khy Khyber er throat the others others' all aU believe they've won the game Same Nothing stop em I Look out for traps Smash em on sight But dont don't follow up too far I Sure said Charles Help me with the stain now will you With his flashlight burning as if It its battery provided current by the week Instead of by the minute Athelstan dragged open the mules mule's pack and produced produced produced pro pro- a n host of things He propped a mirror against the pack and squatted in front of ot It Then he passed a little little lit lit- tle tie bottle to his brother and Charles attended to the strap chin-strap mark that would have betrayed him a British of ot officer seer In any light brighter than dusk In a few tew minutes his whole face was darkened to one hue and Charles stepped back to look at it it I Wont need to wash yourself for tor a month he said The dirt wont won't show I 1 He sniffed at the bottle But that stain wont won't come off If It you do wash never wash never worry I 1 You'll do finely Not yet I wont won't I 1 said Athelstan picking up a little safety razor and beginning beginning be be- ginning on his mustache In a 11 minute minute minute min min- ute he had his upper lip bare Then his brother bent hent over him and rubbed in stain where the scrubby mustache had been After that Athelstan unlocked the leather bag that had bad caused Ismail small so much concern and shook out from It a pile pUe of odds and ends at which his brother nodded with perfect under under- standing The principal item was a apiece apiece apiece piece of silk silk forty forty or fifty yards of f It that It-that that he proceeded to bind into a turban on his head his brother lending him a guiding understanding finger at every turn When that was done the theman theman theman man who had said he looked In the least like a British officer would have lied One after another he drew on native garments picking them from the pile beside him So by rapid stages he developed developed developed de de- Into a native hakim hakIm-by hakIm by creed creeda a converted Hindu like Rewa Hewa one one of the men who practice or modern medicine without a license and with a very great deal of ot added superstition trickery and guesswork I wouldn't trust you with a hapenny ny I announced his brother when he had done The part to a aT T. T Well Well take take these into the fort for forme forme forme me me will you His brother caught the bundle of ot discarded European clothes and imd tuck tucked d them under his arm Now remember old ld man 1 Weve We've got to hold the Khyber and we cant can't do it by riding riding rid rid- ing pell-mell pell Into the first trap set for tor forus forus us I Be a coward if that's the name you care to give it You needn't tell me youve you've got orders to hunt skirmishers skirmish skirmish- ers to a a. standstill because I know better bet bet- ter How know better Never mind 1 I Ive I've been seconded to your crowd Im I'm your senior and Im I'm giving you orders Hit hard when you have to but for Gods God's sake old man ware traps I All right said his brother Then good-by good old man 1 l Good by Athelstan I 1 i They stood facing and shook hands Where had been a man and his reflection reflection reflection tion in the mist there now seemed to tobe tobe tobe be the sl same me man and a native Athelstan Athelstan Athel Athel- stan King had changed his very nature nature na na- na ture with his clothes He stood like a native native moved moved like one even his voice was changed as if lIke If-lIke like the actor who dyed himself all over to act Othello Othello- he could do nothing by halves v By Charles 1 Officers In that force are not chosen for tor their clumsiness or inability to move silently by night His rus footsteps died In the mist almost as quickly as his shadow Before he had been gone gonea gonen a n minute the pass was silent as death again and though Athelstan listened with trained ears the only sound he could detect was of a Jackal cracking a bone fifty or sI sixty ty yards away CHAPTER IX King repacked the loads putting everything back carefully Into the big leather envelopes and locking the empty handbag after throwing In a afew afew afew few stones for tor Ismail's benefit Then he ho went to sit In the moonlight with his back to a great rock and waited there legged cross to give his brother time to make good a retreat through the mist When there was no more doubt that his own men at all events had failed tailed to detect the lieutenant he put two fingers In his mouth and whistled Almost at once he heard sandals come pattering from tram both directions As they emerged emerge out o of the mist ho sat silent and still It was Darya Khan who came first and stood gaping at him but Ismail was a a avery very close sec sec- and the other three were only a little behind For full fall two minutes I I after the man with the sore stomach had come they all stood holding one another's arms astonished Then Then Then- Our sahib sahib King King sahib where sahib where Is he asked Ismail Gone Gonel Gone 1 I r Even Kings King's voice was wasso so completely ch changed that men who had been reared amid mutual suspicion could not recognize nize it l But ut there are his loads londs l I There Is his mule I Here Is his bag 1 said Ismail Ismall Ism all pouncing on it picking It up and slink shak ing lag it It rattles not as formerly There is more In It than there was 1 His two horses and the mule are here said Darya Khan Than Did I say he t took ok them with him asked the hakim who sat still with his back to a rock He went because I came camel 1 He left me here In charge Should he not leave the wherewithal to tomake tomake tomake make one comfortable since I must do dohIs dohis dohis his work Hah I What do I see A Aman Aman man bent nearly double That means a bellyache I 1 Who should have a bellyache bellyache bellyache belly belly- ache when I have potions lotions balms to heal all ills fIls magic charms and talismans big and little pills and pills and at su such h a little price I So small A sf Aprice price 1 Show me the belly betty and pay your money 1 Forget not the money for nothing Is free except air water and the Word Vord of God 1 I have paid money for water |