the determination to initiate his torture without
further delay. The knife was pressed against his side and La's face
was close to his when a sudden burst of flame from new branches thrown
upon the fire without, lighted up the interior of the shelter. Close
beneath her lips La saw the perfect features of the forest god and into
her woman's heart welled all the great love she had felt for Tarzan
since first she had seen him, and all the accumulated passion of the
years that she had dreamed of him.

Dagger in hand, La, the High Priestess, towered above the helpless
creature that had dared to violate the sanctuary of her deity. There
should be no torture--there should be instant death. No longer should
the defiler of the temple pollute the sight of the lord god almighty.
A single stroke of the heavy blade and then the corpse to the flaming
pyre without. The knife arm stiffened ready for the downward plunge,
and then La, the woman, collapsed weakly upon the body of the man she
loved.

She ran her hands in mute caress over his naked flesh; she covered his
forehead, his eyes, his lips with hot kisses; she covered him with her
body as though to protect him from the hideous fate she had ordained
for him, and in trembling, piteous tones she begged him for his love.
For hours the frenzy of her passion possessed the burning hand-maiden
of the Flaming God, until at last sleep overpowered her and she lapsed
into unconsciousness beside the man she had sworn to torture and to
slay. And Tarzan, untroubled by thoughts of the future, slept
peacefully in La's embrace.

At the first hint of dawn the chanting of the priests of Opar brought
Tarzan to wakefulness. Initiated in low and subdued tones, the sound
soon rose in volume to the open diapason of barbaric blood lust. La
stirred. Her perfect arm pressed Tarzan closer to her--a smile parted
her lips and then she awoke, and slowly the smile faded and her eyes
went wide in horror as the significance of the death chant impinged
upon her understanding.

"Love me, Tarzan!" she cried. "Love me, and you shall be saved."

Tarzan's bonds hurt him. He was suffering the tortures of
long-restricted circulation. With an angry growl he rolled over with
his back toward La. That was her answer! The High Priestess leaped to
her feet. A hot flush of shame mantled her cheek and then she went
dead white and stepped to the shelter's entrance.

"Come, Priests of the Flaming God!" she cri