happened, and the almirah from
which he had taken the fatal bottle. In a flash Ahmed saw a chance of
taking advantage of their temporary absence from the dining-room. No
longer hesitating, he ran to the dark passage at the end of the landing,
and shrank into a corner until the two men had crossed from room to
room. Then he stole back on tiptoe, and peeped round the door of the
surgery to make sure that he could not be seen as he entered the room
opposite. The men had their backs to him; Minghal was pointing out the
bottle which had all but killed him. Ahmed slipped into the dining-room,
and looked around for some means of concealment. He had but a moment; if
he did not discover a suitable hiding-place he must get back to the dark
passage before Minghal Khan returned.

The eyes of the Guides were trained to observe quickly. This is what he
saw in an instant of time: at one end of the room, a pianoforte--he had
seen such in the officers' quarters at Hoti-Mardan; in one corner a
number of European chairs pushed back out of the way; in the centre,
four cushioned seats grouped about a little foot-table on which were
cups and bottles and the remains of a meal; along the wall at
right-angles to the door, a wide low divan, with flounces touching the
floor. In a moment he made his deductions and took his resolution. Two
of the four cushioned seats had been occupied by Minghal Khan and the
general; the other two were for the officers whom the darwan and the
khitmutgar had gone to summon. The divan probably would not be used;
beneath it, screened by the flounce, he might lie and hear all that was
said. If other officers came, and the divan were required, it would be
pulled out and rolled across the floor. In that case he must crawl with
it. The chances of discovery by the officers were slight; there was
greater risk of discovery by the servants when the meeting broke up; but
the Guides were accustomed to take risks.

These considerations passed through Ahmed's mind in a flash. A few
seconds after he entered the room he was under the divan, with the
flounce pulled down, not a movement of it to betray that anything had
happened during the men's absence. He wondered whether the beating of
his heart could be heard; it was thumping much more violently now than
when he was deciding what to do. The officers stayed in the surgery some
time; Ahmed heard Minghal Khan talking and laughing; and by the time
they came back his pulse had quiet