CHAPTER XXXIV.AGAIN WITH FRIENDS.
The day came to a close; the stars came out and the cavalcade came nearer its destination. They had traveled now nearly twenty-four hours constantly, and if it were not for meeting their friends, they might wish that the journey would last as long again. It had been more than pleasant and was so restful, after the long tramp underground, that they appreciated it more for this reason. A little longer and they were in sight of the hole through which they had gone into the underground world. It was dark now and they could not see very far through the fields, but near where they thought the hole ought to be, there were lights flickering about. It seemed strange that there should be lights here at this time in the evening, for there was nothing to call them there.
“What do you suppose brings these lights here?” asked Mr. Bruce of Onrai.
“I can’t tell,” said Onrai, “but we will ascertain.”
He gave the leader of the caravan orders to turn into the field on the left and make for the lights. As they came nearer they could see that a number of men were standing about the hole, while others were lying about in the grass as if resting. Near by stood a group of women attendants and standing with them were Enola, Nellie, Mrs. Graham and Sedai. The parade of elephants seemed to attract their attention and they were now watching them closely and hadeven started to move toward them. The cavalcade stopped, the elephants fell on their haunches and our friends scrambled from their howdahs and ran towards the ladies.
“Oh,” they cried, as they, too, hurried towards the travelers.
Mrs. Graham threw herself into her husband’s arms, Nellie fell on Harry’s shoulder, and Enola? Well, she seemed for a moment to be puzzled, but then walked up very gracefully and placed both hands in Onrai’s. Onrai, however, was not satisfied with this and pulling Enola toward him, he threw his great arms about her and pressed her to his heart.
“Are you glad to see me back again, Enola?” said he.
“Why, certainly, Onrai,” said Enola, as soon as she could extricate herself from his arms, “more than glad, for we thought you were lost.”
“We were,” answered Onrai, “and the thought of perishing without again seeing you, nearly drove me mad.”
“But did it not grieve you, too, to think that you would not again see your own people?” asked Enola, trying to call the conversation from herself.
“Yes,” said Onrai, “but it was a different grief. My religion has taught me to expect that I will meet my people again in the next world, and this softened the pain caused by parting from them. But you,” and here Onrai again clasped her in his arms, “I have just found you and learned to love you, with all that love, which has been kept locked in my heart for years waiting for you to come and break the locks which held it captive. It seemed my life had only commencedwhen I met you, Enola, and the thought that, at the very beginning of our happiness, I was to be taken from you forever, was maddening; and you, Enola, did you not grieve when you thought I was lost?” and Onrai asked this with all the simplicity of a child.
“Yes, Onrai,” answered Enola, “I grieved for all of you.”
“We found a strange people, Enola,” said Mr. Bruce, “but their attractiveness lay only in their strangeness.”
“What did you say, Mr. Bruce?” asked Enola, “a strange people in the bowels of the earth? It is hard for me to believe this. Are you not jesting?” and Enola seemed incredulous.
“No,” said Onrai, “we fell in with a strange race of people down there, and it was they who detained us.”
“Tell me all about them,” said Enola, and she was all attention at once.
“Not now, Enola,” said Mr. Bruce, “wait until we have reached the villa, and all are together, and we will give you a full account of our six days’ jaunt in the Land, not of, but under On.”
“I think,” said Mr. Graham, “this is the happiest moment of my life.”
“Why, my dear,” said Mrs. Graham, “I have often heard you make the same remark concerning the eventful time when you first met me.”
“Why, certainly, wife,” answered her husband, “that was the happiest moment which I had known even up to the present time, but now you see I amhappier for having been brought out of a position where I never expected to see you again.”
“And was it as bad as that, father?” asked Nellie.
“Quite,” answered her father; “in fact, it was dollars to cents that we would never again see daylight, but it all goes to show how little we know of what will transpire in our little lives.”
“Yes, things looked pretty dark in every way,” said Harry. “In fact, we couldn’t see our hands before our eyes. And all chances for escape were equally dark and obscure. Where do you suppose we were, mother?”
“Why, somewhere down there in the bowels of the earth,” answered Mrs. Graham.
“Well, we were in the great cave, which so nearly cost us our lives.”
“Where did you come out of this wonderful place?” asked Enola, “I have not heard that yet; and here you have been back nearly twenty minutes.”
“Why, we came out in the ice cave,” said Harry.
“The ice cave,” exclaimed Enola, “and is this then a part of the great cavern?”
“All the same,” said Harry; “or no, not the same, but connected by a tunnel. But if we don’t reach the villa shortly, Mr. Bruce will have little to tell.”
They had now reached the grounds surrounding the villa, and after a short walk through these, they mounted the terrace, and taking seats, Mr. Bruce told the strange story.