CHAPTER XIV.OVER THE WALLS.
The crack of the revolver, following closely on the Somali’s loud yell, had barely died away in echoes when the dark street seemed fairly to burst into life.
The fugitives did not wait to see the result of the shot, but as they dashed madly forward they heard the people calling wildly to one another as they hurried from their dwellings.
Even Melton kept up with wonderful endurance. The excitement had given him false strength, and he kept even pace with Guy and Canaris.
Close at hand was the termination of the street, and as they were within ten yards of it a big Somali suddenly leaped out and barred the way.
The fugitives were going at a rate of speed which it was simply impossible to check. Canaris was a foot in advance, and in an instant more he would have impaled himself on the savage’s outpointed spear.
It was too late to use the revolver which he still carried in his hand, but quick as a flash he hurled it with all his might, and with such correct aim that it landed plump on the fellow’s head with an ugly crack.
The Somali howled with agony, letting the spear drop from his nerveless hands, and just as it clattered to the ground Canaris was upon him with a rush, and down they went together, the Somali undermost.
Canaris was up in a trice, and Guy and Melton, bounding on behind, trampled the half unconscious savage under their feet.
“Go on,” said Guy fiercely. “We will outwit them yet. Brace up, Melton; we’ll soon be out of this hole.”
Forbes gritted his teeth to suppress a cry of pain.
“I can’t keep up much longer,” he said. “I’ll faint from loss of blood.”
The place they had just entered was the great trading locality and slave market of the town. At this time of year it was deserted, but the empty stalls and booths stood about in endless confusion.
The wisdom of the route chosen by Canaris was now apparent, for this labyrinth of paths, which wove an intricate network through the stalls, offered just the opportunity they wanted; and, following the Greek’s guidance, they twisted in and out in a tortuous line that gradually brought them toward the opposite side of the market.
The outcry behind them had by this time swelled to a perfect tumult, and the night air bore it to their ears with startling distinctness.
Fortunately for the fugitives, this vast court was surrounded by grim slave prisons, and they encountered no one in their flight. They reached the opposite side of the market in safety, and, plunging in among the mass of empty prisons, ran on, panting and breathless.
The Greek’s white burnous fluttered on ahead, turning angle after angle, diving into dark alleys and shooting across open spaces. At last he stopped and, too exhausted to speak, waved his hand in triumph at the frowning wall of the town that towered directly over their heads for twenty feet.
Close by the wall was a circular stone tower, partly in ruins, and into this Canaris dived eagerly. It was an anxious moment to the two who waited on the outside, but at last the Greek reappeared in triumph with his hands full. The Jewish merchant had kept his promise.
He paused a second or two to listen to the outcry in the town.
“They are coming nearer,” he said. “Keep cool and don’t get excited. They will search every stall in the market before a man comes near us, and besides this is the last place they would look. They will never suspect us of any intention to scale the wall. Still we must lose no time,” he added. “Now here is a box of shells apiece; put them in your pockets, buckle these sabers around your waists, takethe rifles I bought. They are better, so you may throw the others away.”
“Forbes can’t carry one,” said Guy. “What shall we do with it?”
“Leave it behind,” replied Canaris. “We have burden enough. I had the Jew put up the stuff in three oilcloth bags. We must divide it into two loads.”
He turned the contents of all on the ground.
“Yes, everything is here,” he said. “Crackers, dates, figs, two lamps, a box of candles, matches, and two flasks of palm oil. Now, then, for the final move.”
He divided the stuff into two bags, and then, going back into the guard tower, came out with a bunch of long ropes.
“Hurry up,” said Guy. “Do you observe how close the sounds are coming?”
“They are searching the market,” said Canaris calmly. “They take us for a party of drunken Arabs out on a lark.”
“Then they don’t suspect the truth?” asked Guy.
Canaris laughed.
“If it were known that the Emir’s English prisoners had escaped,” he said, “the fiends up yonder would be making more noise than the surf that breaks on the rocks at Bab el Mandeb.”
The ropes had at one end a rude iron hook, and,taking one of them, Canaris threw it over the wall, retaining the other end in his hand.
He pulled it in a yard or two, and then the rope became suddenly taut. The hook was secure. He took a sharp glance around him, measured with his ear the hoarse shouts that still rose from the slave market, and then went nimbly up the rope, hand over hand. He reached the top in safety.
“Now fasten the stuff on,” he whispered down; “put the other ropes in the bag.”
Guy obeyed instructions, and Canaris rapidly drew the string up. He then speedily hooked a second rope to the wall and dropped it down.
“Fasten Forbes to one rope, and come up the other yourself,” he called out to Chutney.
Here a difficulty arose. Melton was, of course, unable to climb the rope, and if a noose were slipped under his arms the wound would be torn and lacerated by the strain.
“It’s no use, Chutney,” he said. “I foresaw this. You must get off without me.”
Guy was in despair. He was just on the point of bidding Canaris make his escape alone, when a happy thought struck him.
“I have it, Melton,” he cried joyfully. “Have you much power in your arms?”
“Yes,” said Melton, “but not enough to go up that rope.”
“That’s all right. I don’t want you to go up the rope,” returned Guy. “Here, put your feet together and stand straight.”
Hastily noosing the rope, he drew the knot tightly about Melton’s legs just above the knee.
“You take a good grip with your hands,” he added. “There won’t be much strain on your wound and we’ll have you on the top in a jiffy.”
Melton obeyed instructions, and Guy pulled himself speedily to the top.
“Crouch down,” said Canaris; “don’t you see that watch-tower?” and he pointed to a dim mass rising from the wall some distance off. “That is the nearest tower,” he added. “I hardly think they can see us, but it is better to take precautions.”
The other two ropes were already dangling on the outer side of the wall. Canaris had planned everything for an emergency.
Guy took a hasty glance at the roofs and battlements spread before them on one side, the moonlit landscape on the other, and then he whispered down, “All right. Melton?”
“Yes, go ahead,” came the faint reply.
“Quick, they are coming!” cried Canaris in sudden excitement, and as he spoke a yell went up close at hand, and three or four dark figures turned the corner of the nearest slave-prison.
THEN THE SPEAR FLASHED IN THE TORCHLIGHT.THEN THE SPEAR FLASHED IN THE TORCHLIGHT.
A big Somali was in the lead, and, spying Melton, he raised his spear.
“You fiend!” cried Guy, and, lifting a loose stone from the wall, he hurled it down.
It struck the spear from the rascal’s hand, and, before he could recover himself, Guy and Canaris had dragged Melton to the top of the wall by a prodigious effort.
“Down, down!” cried Canaris, and as they crouched low three or four spears went over their heads and a hoarse shout of rage went up from the baffled Somalis that was caught up and repeated far back into the town.
“Keep cool,” cautioned Canaris; “the ropes are up; they can’t reach us. Five minutes more, and——” The words froze on his lips. Loud above the shouts of the savages rose a harsh, metallic sound that vibrated in shuddering echoes through the night air. It was the beating of the tomtom at the Emir’s palace.
An electric circuit could not have more speedily roused the town. A vast, sullen roar went up instantly, and then, mingled with the clang of the tomtom and the tumult of the people, rang out a harsh rattle of alarm-drums that swelled and spread until every oval watch-turret on the town walls was sounding the tocsin announcing to the subjects of Rao Khan the escape of the hated Englishmen.
CHAPTER XV.THE PURSUIT.
“Now for it,” cried Canaris. “Don’t be scared. In two minutes we’ll be out of reach of these fiends.”
His appearance belied his words, for he was trembling with fright. The rope about Melton’s legs had not been loosened, and he was instantly lowered on the other side. In less time than it takes to tell, Guy and Canaris had joined him, and all three felt the solid earth beneath their feet again.
The situation was now extremely critical. The tomtom still rang out from the palace, and the drums were beating in the watch-towers, though their volume of sound could be heard but faintly above the constantly increasing roar of the maddened people.
The fugitives had scaled the wall at a point on the western side of the city very close to the southern angle; the western gate was still more remote, and from these gates the pursuit must come.
That it would come quickly no one could doubt, for the rabble of Somalis who had led the chase through the market-place had by this time reached the gates with the tidings of the fugitives’ escape over the wall.
Canaris took a bag and a rifle and Guy followed his example.
Not a second of time was lost, but, turning to the southwest, they dashed down the long, slanting hill toward the valley that opened clear and distinct at their feet. Their ears rang with the horrid din and turmoil, and this spurred them on to greater efforts as they plunged forward with great strides.
At the angle of the wall stood a watch-tower, and from this coign of vantage the guards saw the fleeing fugitives, outlined by the treacherous moonlight.
Crack! crack! crack! rang their rifles, and the bullets whistled keenly through the air, but the flying figures went straight on and speedily vanished over the crest of the hill.
The valley beneath the town was skimmed across, and then, scaling a low stone wall, they plunged into the shadow of a big plantation and ran on between rows of limes and coffee trees.
Guy feared that the Arabs who owned these orchards would join in the pursuit, but Canaris assured him that there was little danger of that. An uproar in the town, he declared, was always the signal for the dwellers outside the walls to shut themselves in their houses.
A danger from another source, however, threatened them, for with a furious growl a great dog came bounding on behind, and by his loud outcrymade the location of the fugitives very plain to their enemies.
The brute persistently followed them up, snapping at their heels, and baying loudly. No stones could be found, and to use firearms would only make matters worse. On the farther side of the plantation, however, the dog stopped and uttered a long-drawn howl that was caught up in echoes across the valley.
“I’m giving out,” cried Melton faintly. “You’ll have to leave me.”
Canaris turned on him fiercely.
“Do you hear the mad fiends howling behind us? They are scattering over the country, and if we are caught, good by,” and he whipped his hand across his throat. “You must keep up, only half a mile more, and I’ll hide you so securely that the fiends can never find us.”
“Year hear?” added Guy. “Only half a mile more, Melton, and then rest.”
But all this encouragement was of little use. Forbes was suffering now from the reaction, and his strength was almost gone. A sound of shouting suddenly rose from the valley, and taking Melton by the arms they fairly dragged him along.
A hill now loomed up before them, and clutching stones and limbs of trees they made their way painfully to the summit.
Looking toward the town they could see torches moving to and fro across the valley, and twinkling through the leafy avenues of the plantation.
Their old enemy, the dog, began to howl again, but a rifle-shot speedily cut his career short.
As they hastened down the western slope of the hill the sound of water broke on their hearing, and then the stream came in view, a swift and narrow torrent brawling over rocks and ledges.
Guy ran ahead, and filling his helmet, offered it to Melton, who drank deeply.
“I feel like a new man,” he cried; “that was splendid.”
Canaris now led them down the stream for some distance until a shallow place permitted them to wade across. The valley had become a gorge. The sloping hills gave way to great frowning masses of rock so high and so close that no moonlight pierced the shadows. Finally the Greek stopped and pointed above his head.
“We must climb the rocks,” he said. “Are you equal to it?”
Melton looked dubiously at the steep side of the gorge, but before he could reply Canaris started up, and he had no alternative but to follow. Guy came close behind to catch his friend if he should give out.
The ascent, however, was not so bad as it looked.Canaris picked his way with great skill, winding along the face of the cliff in a zigzag manner. Had it been daylight dizziness would have caused them to lose their heads, for the gulf below grew deeper every moment, and at places the path was but a foot wide.
At length Canaris climbed over a big rock that barred the way, and then assisted Melton and Guy to the top.
“Here we are,” he said cheerily, “and just as safe as though we were in the Acropolis at Athens.”
They stood on a small plateau, protected by a low parapet of jagged rocks that extended in a half circle. The top of the cliff was close over their heads, and behind them was a natural grotto scooped concavely out of the solid rock. It was a perfect hiding place and a splendid point of defense in case of an attack.
Melton dropped feebly on the stone floor, and Guy and the Greek sat down against the parapet. Reaction had come to all of them. Now they were really safe, the terror and excitement of the flight was visible on their faces. Their clothes were soaking wet, and the perspiration rolled down their cheeks.
“Look,” exclaimed Canaris, leaning over the parapet, “look down there!”
He pointed into the gorge, and Guy, glancingdown, saw torches flaring against the rocky walls, revealing in their glow dark, swiftly-moving figures, and weird shadows dancing on the waters of the torrent.
Canaris observed Guy’s expression of alarm, for he said calmly: “Don’t fear. We are perfectly safe; try and sleep some; you need rest badly.”
Canaris stretched himself out flat, and, after making sure that Melton was sleeping—for the poor fellow’s weariness was greater than the pain of the wound—Guy, too, lay down on the hard rock, and fell instantly asleep.
Dawn had been very near when they reached their hiding place. Through the early hours of the morning they slept on, heedless of the loud cries, the sounds of anger and wrath that floated up from the shadows of the gorge, and when the sun was past its meridian, Guy awoke. Canaris stretched himself and sat up at the same time.
Their first thought was of Melton. He was still sleeping, but it was a restless, uneasy slumber, for he tossed about and moaned.
The heat was now very great, and they suffered terribly from thirst. Far below they could hear the water rushing over its stony bed, and the sound was maddening.
Even had one dared to attempt that perilous descent in the broad light of day, there would havebeen danger from another source, for all that afternoon Somalis and Arabs in large and small parties passed up and down the gorge, even scanning at times the rocky sides of the cliff, but never for a moment suspecting the close proximity of those they sought.
At last Melton awoke. He was weak and feverish. His wound had opened, and his clothes were heavy with stiffened blood. He complained bitterly of thirst, and talked at times in a rambling, excited manner.
“He’s in a bad way,” said the Greek. “We must leave here as soon as night comes, and as he is too ill to walk, he must be carried.”
“What do you propose to do?” asked Guy.
“Well,” rejoined Canaris, “we shall travel only at night. If all goes well, we will be fifty miles distant in four or five days, and on the fifth night we shall reach our journey’s end.”
“Our journey’s end?” queried Guy.
“Yes; of our land-journey at least, for we shall then be at the entrance to the underground river.”
CHAPTER XVI.BESIEGED.
The African sun had gone down, leaving only a reddish tinge against the western horizon, when the three fugitives left their refuge and climbed to the top of the cliff. In the dim twilight it was impossible to make out the country which lay vaguely outspread at their feet.
Canaris made a rude stretcher of branches, and, arranging Melton as comfortably as possible, they started away. The top of the gorge sloped on this side into a valley, and following this for some distance they finally reached more open country.
No trace of their pursuers was seen. They had all gone back to Harar, for none ever remained outside the walls at night, Canaris declared.
Soon a small stream was reached, where they lunched and quenched their thirst. Canaris washed Melton’s wound, and bound it up in soft, wet bandages. After a while the moon came out, and they could see for some distance on either side.
It seemed strange to reflect that they were now traveling through a vast and absolutely unexplored part of Africa. All was wild and desolate, for Harar and its vicinity once left behind, no villages or habitations were found.
The cries of various animals echoed from the forest, and once a lion roared loudly; but without molestation from man or beast our little party toiled on painfully until dawn.
They carried Melton every step of the way, and when they halted in a glade close to a pool, he was sleeping soundly.
Either the fresh water or the long rest had helped him, for when night came again he was able to walk, and day by day he grew better.
For three nights they journeyed to the southward, sleeping all day in secluded spots.
The wisdom of night travel was plainly seen, for they often discovered camp fires gleaming on each side of them, and on one occasion nearly ran into a wandering group of Gallas, while from their hiding place during the day they saw caravans and hordes of natives journeying to and fro.
The night had its disadvantages too, for twice they were attacked by howling animals, and on one occasion had to climb trees while a herd of elephants went trumpeting past. Fortunately, more dangerous beasts kept their distance.
The third night’s journey led them through a most unusually rich and fertile country, miles of mellow pasturage watered by many streams, bits of forest land, and meadows clumped with bushes and patches of trees, while on both sides were the dark profiles of huge mountains.
That day they slept on the side of a hill among great rocks, and when they were preparing to start at sundown, Canaris said briefly:
“We ought to reach our journey’s end before morning.”
Of the stores they had brought along there now remained but a handful of crumbs. Guy was deeply concerned over the question of supplies for their voyage in case the underground river was discovered, but Canaris bade him not to worry until the time came.
With feelings which it would be difficult to describe, they resumed their night-march. An unknown future, full of terrors and fears, yawned before them.
It is hard to say what guided Canaris in the direction he took. He had once been over the ground, but it was scarcely possible that he could remember the read so well. He strode on full of confidence, however, his rifle over his shoulder and his revolver ready for use in his right hand. Guy and Melton followed behind in single file.
They made slow progress, for Canaris led them in among mountain gorges, and they were compelled to ford streams and clamber painfully over big stones.
At last they emerged again on more open groundand traveled through patches of waving grass and scrub, keeping parallel all the while with two mountain ranges that lay to the right and left. The land was full of rolling swells like ocean waves, and as they passed over the crest of one of these ridges a sudden gleam of moonlight shining on water some distance off riveted their attention.
As they descended into the hollow it was hidden from view. Several times the Greek halted and scrutinized his surroundings closely. He was not altogether satisfied, for he no longer strode on confidently, but walked with a hesitating step. Guy and Melton shared his anxiety.
“What’s wrong?” inquired the former. “Have you missed the way, Canaris?”
“I don’t know,” replied the Greek. “We must stop soon and wait for daylight. We ought to be close to the stone kraal by this time.”
While conversing they had crossed another slight swell, and they were half way down the hollow when a hoarse cry from Melton brought them to a halt.
The scene before them was enough to appall the stoutest heart. Twenty yards away lay a broad pool of water and along its sandy edge were grouped half a dozen great lions, some lapping up the water greedily, others sitting lazily on their haunches, waiting no doubt for some fat deer to pass that way.
A low chorus of growls greeted the approach of the travelers, and made them shiver from head to foot.
“Shall I fire?” whispered Guy excitedly.
“No, for your life, no,” retorted Canaris. “Back up the hill as silently as possible. Don’t shoot unless we are attacked.”
With arms in readiness they moved backward step by step. The lions began to pace up and down the strip of sand, tossing their shaggy heads toward the frightened men, and then the leader, a monstrous fellow with a mane that swept the ground, advanced a few paces and uttered a tremendous roar that seemed to shake the earth.
Guy cocked his rifle, but at the sharp click Canaris turned on him fiercely.
“Don’t shoot,” he whispered. “Don’t shoot. If we can get over the ridge we may escape. I don’t think they will attack us.”
In a moment more they reached the crest of the slope. The lions were still down by the pool.
“Look,” exclaimed Canaris, pointing to the right. “Do you see those rocks! We must make a run for them.”
The spot referred to was a dim mass rising out of the plain some fifty yards distant. Whether they really were rocks or not it was hard to tell.
Another fearful roar put an end to indecision, andthey ran at the top of their speed toward the hoped-for refuge. No one glanced behind. In imagination they felt the hot breath on their necks and heard the soft patter through the grass.
Then the refuge was before them, a tall column of rock rising from a clump of jungle grass and some low, stunted timber.
It towered up in ledges and in a trice Canaris had sprung upon the first platform, and extended a helping hand to his companions.
With frantic haste they climbed another jutting ledge and pulled themselves to the top. None too soon, for as they turned to look, the big lion sprang into the air and landed with a roar of baffled rage on the ledge beneath.
He rose instantly for another spring, but as he reared upward Guy brought down the butt of his rifle on the massive head, and the beast rolled down into the grass at the foot of the rock.
Another lion loomed up in the shadows, and together the two paced about, lashing their tails and growling with fury.
“That was a narrow escape,” said Guy. “A moment more and we would have been caught.”
“We’re not altogether safe yet,” replied Canaris. “Those are hungry looking brutes, and it’s hard to tell what they may do. We must remain quiet and watch them closely.”
The two lions continued to prowl up and down, licking their chops and occasionally glancing at the top of the rock. Suddenly they halted in the middle of their beat, and, pricking up their ears, assumed an expectant attitude.
“They hear something,” said Guy. “I wonder what it can be.”
For a full minute the two noble beasts stood like bits of statuary, not a muscle quivering, their tails slowly waving to and fro. Then with a couple of bounds they vanished in the high grass.
“The siege is raised,” exclaimed Guy, breathing a low sigh of relief.
“Hush,” replied Canaris, “not a sound, not a whisper for your lives. Down, down, crouch low; throw yourselves flat!”
His voice was tremulous with sudden fear, and his hand shook as he pointed one nerveless finger in the direction taken by the lions.
“Look, look!” he muttered with chattering teeth. “One sound and we are doomed.”
CHAPTER XVII.A CLOSE SHAVE.
The Greek’s extreme terror sprang from no insignificant cause. Over the crest of a ridge some thirty yards distant came a large body of men. It was very evident that they would pass close to the rock, and the three fugitives, crouching on its flat surface in the gloom, may well be pardoned for believing that the enemy were on their track.
As the advance guard drew still closer, Canaris thrust his face against the stone. Melton did the same; but Guy, whose curiosity fairly mastered his fear, ventured to raise his head slightly, and a single glance showed him that the strange foe had no intention of halting.
They passed within ten yards of the rock, it is true, but not a man looked to right or left, and they moved at a rapid and steady pace.
Guy’s amazement grew deeper as the long procession went by in constantly increasing numbers, for even to his unskilled eyes it was plain that these men were neither Arabs nor Somalis.
The dim light revealed their powerful stature, the dark faces crowned with turbans, the linen cloaks that were flung carelessly on their shoulders, and the various arms, comprising shields, swords, spears, and even guns.
At intervals the stalwart figure of a man towered above the rest, mounted high on a camel or an elephant.
Melton and Canaris ventured to raise their heads in response to a nudge from Guy, and all three witnessed the passing of this strange procession, which comprised nearly a hundred men.
As the rear guard vanished over a ridge to the south, Canaris, without a word, swung himself nimbly to the ground and picked up some glittering object that lay in the path.
“Look,” he exclaimed in a tone of wonder, as Guy and Melton followed him down, “do you recognize this workmanship? But no, how could you?” he resumed, without waiting for an answer. “This weapon is of Abyssinian make, and those men were Abyssinians.”
“But what are they doing here, so far from their own country?” demanded Guy.
“It is a war party,” said Canaris, “and we are not so far from the borders of Abyssinia, after all. It is no uncommon thing for them to raid on the Gallas.”
The dagger passed from hand to hand, and was inspected with much curiosity, until Canaris pointed toward the east and said: “Morning has come, and the sun will soon be up. Let us climb the rock and make a survey of the country.”
Daylight came on with marvelous rapidity, and as the range of vision gradually became clear for a distance of several miles, the Greek rose to his feet and scanned the surroundings with a sweeping gaze.
His countenance expressed first perplexity, then delighted surprise, and turning to his companions he cried:
“We have reached our destination. See! There is the stone kraal, those scattered columns of rock to the south that rise from the jungle. Yes, the old Englishman was right, for yonder lies the Elephant Peak and the Lion’s Head.”
It was indeed as the Greek said. The broad valley was dotted with a curious rock formation that bore a strong likeness to a native village of huts, and on either side of the valley, from the rugged chains of mountains, rose two lofty peaks, one fashioned like a recumbent elephant, the other a perfect semblance of a lion’s shaggy head.
A murmur of surprise burst from the trio as they gazed along on this strange verification of their hopes.
The mountain peaks were at least four miles distant, for the breadth of the valley was about eight.
For the moment the recent passage of the warlike Abyssinians was forgotten. Then a very significant occurrence recalled it forcibly to their minds.
From the base of the Lion’s Head suddenly rosea column of yellow smoke, and two or three gun shots echoed distinctly across the valley.
“The Abyssinians have attacked the town of the Gallas,” cried Canaris. “It lies at the foot of that peak, and is the same kraal at which the Englishman was kept in slavery when he discovered the underground river.”
“I hope they’ll eat each other up like the Kilkenny cats,” observed Guy coolly.
“But you don’t understand,” cried the Greek in strange excitement. “They will scatter over the valley, they will flee to those rocks yonder for protection, and unless we find the entrance to that river at once we are lost.”
“Canaris is right,” spoke up Melton. “We must make immediate search for the rock with the cross. It is our only hope.”
“Yes, our only hope,” echoed the Greek. “Come quickly, there is no time to lose.”
He slipped to the ground and led his companions rapidly down the valley toward the stone village.
They hastened on among the scattered rocks for a quarter of a mile or more, until the extreme southern edge was reached, and then Canaris stopped.
“This is the south side,” he said; “we must search the rocks for one with a cross.”
They scattered, Guy toward the west, Melton to the east. It was a time of peril, for the yellow smokewas curling up over the Lion’s Head in heavier columns, and the firing was more distinct, as though the conflict were spreading toward them across the valley.
“The rock with the cross, on the south side of the stone kraal.” A simple enough direction on the face of it, and yet the eager searchers, as they hurried from stone to stone, scrutinizing every side and angle, failed to discover the faintest trace of anything resembling a cross.
Canaris wrung his hands in dismay when they came together after the fruitless search.
“We are lost, we are lost!” he groaned. “What will become of us? Go, make another search; inspect the base of every stone; the hidden entrance must exist.”
Guy shook his head.
“That cross was made twenty years ago,” he said. “In that time the storms could have destroyed all trace of it unless the Englishman carved it very deep, and in that event we should have discovered it already.”
“It must be found,” persisted Canaris in his terror. “Hark! The firing is coming nearer. In half an hour the valley will swarm with savage foes. Go! Go! Go!”
He fairly shrieked out the last words, and threw himself in despair down amid the jungle grass.
The Greek did not exaggerate the danger. A startling confirmation of his fears was at hand.
Warned in time by a commotion in the bushes, Guy and Melton dropped flat, as a savage, spear in hand, and bleeding from a wound in the head, burst out of the jungle twenty yards distant and made full speed for a rock a few yards to the north of that by which the Englishmen lay concealed.
All unconscious of the three pairs of eyes watching his movements, he stooped, flung the tangled grass madly aside, and, rolling a loose stone from the base of the rock, revealed a dark cavity in the smooth side.
He threw a frightened glance in the direction he had come, and, dropping his spear and diving into the hole, pulled the stone back in place from within.
All this happened in less time than it takes to tell.
“Saved!” burst thankfully from Guy’s lips as he sprang to his feet.
“Saved!” echoed Melton and Canaris.
Snatching up their baggage, they dashed across the narrow space that divided the two great boulders. Guy tore the rock from the entrance, and, as the imprisoned savage within uttered a hoarse cry, he pointed his rifle at the opening.
“Go ahead,” called out Melton; “he’s unarmed; he can’t harm you.”
Guy hesitated for an instant, and then crawled into the forbidding cavern on hands and knees.
A distant sound of scuffling and rattling of stones told that the savage was retreating into the bowels of the earth.
Melton handed in the rifles and the baggage, and crawled in after them. Canaris was the last to enter, and with Melton’s aid the stone, which was round in shape, was pulled back against the entrance, and all was darkness, save for one crevice an inch or two wide.
The Greek peered sharply through this, and then exclaimed in a low whisper: “We are just in time. A party of Abyssinians are approaching through the jungle in pursuit of the Galla fugitive.
“Hush!” he added; “don’t make a sound; they are coming directly toward the rock.”
CHAPTER XVIII.THE UNDERGROUND RIVER.
A moment of terrible suspense followed the Greek’s announcement. From without could be plainly heard a chorus of angry shouts as the Abyssinians searched for their missing prey.
Then the sounds grew fainter and Canaris said quietly: “They have gone on past the rock. We had better strike a light and see what has become of that black rascal. I cannot understand how he knew anything about this place. It may not be the proper entrance after all.”
One of the bronze lamps was filled with palm oil and lighted, and Guy undertook to lead the way into the depths of the cavern.
The passage was amply large enough to hold two or three men standing up, but it led downward at a very sharp angle. The journey was performed in silence, and after traveling ten or fifteen minutes Guy stopped.
A vast empty space was before him, and at his feet lay a sharp slope of loose earth. Here were seen the tracks of the savage, and without hesitation Guy began the descent, and half crawling, half sliding, reached firm ground a few yards below.
Melton and Canaris were close behind, and together they went up into the vast expanse of the cavern. Under foot was hard, compact sand, and in a moment more the glare of the lamp was reflected on running water, and they stood on the brink of the mysterious underground river.
“We have found it?” exclaimed Canaris exultingly. “The Englishman was right.”
It was impossible to judge of the width of the stream. It might be very narrow and it might be very broad. The flowing water made not a sound, and yet the current was swift, for a bit of paper that Melton tossed in was snatched from sight immediately.
As they gazed on this strange sight with emotions that it would be impossible to describe, a vague, shadowy object passed down the stream and vanished in the darkness.
“There goes that fellow,” cried Guy. “He has escaped in a canoe,” and hastening up along the shore, waving the lamp in front of him, he uttered a cry of astonishment that echoed through the cavern and brought his companions quickly to his side.
Drawn back a few yards from the water lay two long, heavy canoes, and a sharp furrow in the sand leading to the river’s edge showed that a third canoe had recently stood beside the others. Half a dozen rude paddles were strewn on the sand. The savage had evidently been in such haste to escape that thethought of turning the other canoes adrift, and thus eluding pursuit, never entered his head.
Beyond the canoes, further progress was blocked by masses of eaith.
“This was the abode of that strange race of natives,” said Guy solemnly, “and under those stones they have lain buried since the earthquake years ago.”
He turned and led the way down the stream.
Fifteen yards below lay another jutting mass of earth. This was the extent of the cavern, a beach fifty yards long running back to the narrow passage and terminated by walls of earth; beyond was darkness and the river, running none knew where.
Yet the only hope of seeing home and friends, vague and uncertain as it was, rested with this mysterious, cavernous stream. It might lead to the coast and safety, but far more likely death and destruction awaited anyone daring enough to trust himself to its treacherous current.
“The sea is hundreds of miles away,” said Guy gloomily, as he sat down on the sand and placed the lamp carefully beside him. “How are we going to live through such a journey as that? Even now our last bit of food is gone, and where shall we get more?”
Canaris pondered a moment before he ventured to reply.
“I see but one plan,” he said finally. “At nightfall we must visit the burned village. The enemy will have gone by then, and we may discover abandoned provisions.”
“If we could shoot any game——” began Melton, but Guy interrupted him.
“The fighting has scared everything away from the vicinity,” he remarked.
“Yes, that is true,” said the Greek. “The animals have fled to the mountains, and, besides, Oko Sam and his tribe of Gallas keep the game well thinned out.”
“What did you say?” cried Guy, springing to his feet in excitement. “Is this Oko Sam’s village yonder that the Abyssinians have raided?”
The Greek nodded assent.
“Yes, Oko Sam is the chief.”
“Then Sir Arthur Ashby and Colonel Carrington are close at hand,” exclaimed Guy.
“And Momba,” added Melton fervently. “All may be saved yet.”
“And was it to Oko Sam your comrades were sold as slaves?” cried Canaris. “Why did you not mention his name before? I could have told you this long ago.”
“I never thought of it,” rejoined Guy. “I gave them up as lost forever. Alas! they are probably in the hands of the Abyssinians now.”
“Either that or dead,” said the Greek, “but undoubtedly the former, for Menelek, the Abyssinian king, is fond of white captives, and their lives would be spared if they fell into the hands of the raiding party.”
“And how shall we find out?” demanded Guy. “I will not embark on this river until uncertainty about their fate is removed.”
“When darkness comes we will leave the cavern,” replied Canaris. “It is possible we shall learn something. Until then have patience.”
The hours of tedious waiting were a little relieved by a discovery that Melton made.
In some of the canoes he found a couple of rude bone fishhooks. This seemed pretty fair proof that fish existed in the underground river, and as Guy happened to have a roll of cord, three strong lines were constructed and laid away for possible future use.
When, to the best of their judgments, evening was close at hand, they started back through the passage and reached the entrance shortly before ten o’clock.
Darkness soon came on, and as all seemed quiet they ventured to roll back the stone and crawl out. Far across the valley a faint glow was visible against the somber sky, probably from the smoldering embers of the burned village, while directly north of the cavern, in the vicinity of the pool of water wherethe lions had been encountered the previous night, a number of camp fires were twinkling merrily through the scattered boulders.
“This is the camp of the Abyssinians,” declared Canaris without hesitation. “One of us must spy into it and see if your friends are prisoners; another must go to the village for provisions, and a third man should remain here at the mouth of the cavern.”
This proposed division of the forces did not please Guy and Melton.
“Why must a man remain at the cavern?” demanded Chutney.
“To mark the place in case one of us is pursued and loses his bearings in the darkness,” was the Greek’s calm reply.
Guy saw the advisability of this and made no further objection. After brief discussion it was decided that he should remain on guard, while Canaris visited the village and Forbes reconnoitered the Abyssinian camp. Without any delay they started off on their respective missions, and Guy was left alone.
For a while he paced up and down before the cavern, his rifle in the hollow of his arm, and then sitting down on the round stone he reflected over his perilous situation and the strange train of events that had led up to it. The stars shining down on him from the blackness of the African sky seemed towhisper of his far-away English home and the friends he would probably never see again.
Then he thought of his comrades in India and the expedition he had so fondly hoped to join, that even now was fighting its way through the hills of Chittagong. His reverie was broken by a sharp “hist!” and Forbes glided swiftly out of the gloom.
“No, they have not been captured,” he whispered in response to Guy’s eager inquiries. “I was around the camp on all sides. The Abyssinians have secured some Galla prisoners, and among them the chief himself, Oko Sam, but none of our friends are there. I am terribly afraid they have been massacred, Chutney.”
“We will know when the Greek returns,” replied Guy, who did not care to admit his belief that Melton was right.
They sat down together by the rock and conversed in low tones. An hour passed and then another.
“Canaris should be here by this time,” said Guy uneasily. “Can anything have happened to him, I wonder?”
Almost as he spoke a muffled trampling sound was heard, two huge objects loomed out of the darkness ahead, and as Guy’s hand trembled on the trigger of his rifle the Greek’s familiar voice uttered a low exclamation and he advanced slowly, leading two big camels loaded down with trappings.
“Well by Jove——” began Guy, but Canaris checked him instantly.
“Not so loud. I picked up these animals only a quarter of a mile back. They have strayed away from the Abyssinian camp.”
“But tell me, what have you discovered?” exclaimed Guy. “And you have brought no food. Must we starve, then?”