brings--with all due respect to Norhala's good intentions."

He started for the doorway; the eunuch blocked his way.

"We have with us food of our own, Norhala," I explained. "He goes to get
it."

She nodded indifferently; clapped her hands. Yuruk shrank back, and out
strode Drake.

"I am weary," sighed Norhala. "The way was long. I will refresh
myself--"

She stretched out a foot toward Yuruk. He knelt, unlaced the turquoise
bands, drew off the sandals. Her hands sought her breast, dwelt for an
instant there.

Down slipped her silken veils, clingingly, slowly, as though reluctant
to unclasp her; whispering they fell from the high and tender breasts,
the delicate rounded hips, and clustered about her feet in soft
petalings as of some flower of pale amber foam. Out of the calyx of that
flower arose the gleaming miracle of her body crowned with glowing glory
of her cloudy hair.

Naked she was, yet clothed with an unearthly purity, the purity of the
far-flung, serene stars, of the eternal snows upon some calm, high-flung
peak, the tranquil, silver dawns of spring; protected by some spell of
divinity which chilled and slew the flame of desire. A maiden Ishtar, a
virginal Isis; a woman--yet with no more of woman's lure than if she had
been some exquisite and breathing statue of mingled ivory and milk of
pearls.

So she stood, indifferent to us who gazed upon her, withdrawn, musing,
as though she had forgotten us. And that serene indifference, with its
entire absence of what we term sex consciousness, revealed to me once
more how great was the abyss between us and her.

Slowly she raised her arms, wound the floating tresses into a coronal.
I saw Drake enter with the saddlebags; saw them drop from hands relaxing
under the shock of this amazing tableau; saw his eyes widen and fill
with wonder and half-awed admiration.

Now Norhala stepped out of her fallen robes and moved toward the further
wall, Yuruk following. He stooped, raised an ewer of silver and began
gently to pour over her shoulders its contents. Again and again he bent
and filled the vessel, dipping it into a shallow basin from which came
the bubbling and chuckling of a little spring. And again I marveled at
the marble smoothness and fineness of her skin on which the caressing
water left tiny silvery globules, gemming it. The eunuch slithered to
one side, drew from a quaint chest clothes of white floss; patted her
dry with them; threw over her shoulder