prang forward, hands outstretched, almost upon Hito, who turned with
a yelp of alarm, and dodged. Nicanor started back as one in sudden
surprise.

"Ha, Julia, sweet friend!" he cried. "Who sent thee here to me, with thy
scarf of gold and pearl, thy raven locks and thy dewy lips, with bells
upon thine ankles, and a tambour in thy hand? See, our lord cometh! Let
us dance for him that perhaps we may find favor in his sight."

Standing in front of Hito he began to dance, his hands hanging limp at
his sides, his face utterly without expression. Hito gasped.

"What hath come to thee?" he quavered. "Fool--come to thy senses before
thou art flogged back to them."

"Dance with me, sweet maiden!" said Nicanor; and suddenly caught Hito's
fat and helpless hands in his lean brown ones and danced down the length
of the room with him. Perforce, since he could not struggle free, Hito
ran alongside, dragging back unwillingly, his face gray with fright. At
the end of the room Nicanor turned and danced back again, dragging his
captive.

"Dance, fair Julia, dance!" he cried; and in his gyrations brought
without warning his nail-spiked sandal down on Hito's foot. Hito
bellowed and danced upon one foot with pain, and once dancing, found
that he could not stop.

"Let me go!" he panted, furious. "Slave--thou madman--let me go, I say!
I do not wish to dance--I will not dance!"

"Not when our lord commands it?" cried Nicanor, breathing hard himself.
"Why, then, I do not wish to dance either. But since he saith 'Dance,'
dance I must, and so must thou, sweet girl!"

"I am no girl!" shrieked Hito, haled off down the room again. "I am
Hito, and I command that you stop!"

"Now why give me lies like that?" said Nicanor. "Have I not eyes which
have long hungered for thy beauty? Do I not know thee, Julia the dancing
girl?"

"Thou art mad in very truth! Good Nicanor--sweet Nicanor--let me go, and
I'll swear to keep between us this tale of thy doings!"

Nicanor answered nothing. Always his face was blank, but his grip on
Hito's wrists was iron. Up and down the room he went, leaping, dancing;
and up and down went Hito after him, struggling, sobbing for breath, his
unwieldy bulk trembling with fright and weariness. When his steps
slackened, through sheer inability to keep up, Nicanor, with a bound
forward, dragged him after, so that, to save himself from falling on his
face, he bounded also, on his fat legs, with explosive grunts of
breathless