believe, since otherwise he would have
sought her out. She did not know that he had even better reason to
believe her dead, and that it was because of that belief he had made no
effort to find her after his raid upon the village of Kovudoo.

Behind a great flowering shrub Hanson lay gazing at the stars and
waiting. He had lain thus and there many nights before. For what was
he waiting, or for whom? He heard the girl approaching, and half
raised himself to his elbow. A dozen paces away, the reins looped over
a fence post, stood his pony.

Meriem, walking slowly, approached the bush behind which the waiter
lay. Hanson drew a large bandanna handkerchief from his pocket and
rose stealthily to his knees. A pony neighed down at the corrals. Far
out across the plain a lion roared. Hanson changed his position until
he squatted upon both feet, ready to come erect quickly.

Again the pony neighed--this time closer. There was the sound of his
body brushing against shrubbery. Hanson heard and wondered how the
animal had gotten from the corral, for it was evident that he was
already in the garden. The man turned his head in the direction of the
beast. What he saw sent him to the ground, huddled close beneath the
shrubbery--a man was coming, leading two ponies.

Meriem heard now and stopped to look and listen. A moment later the
Hon. Morison Baynes drew near, the two saddled mounts at his heels.

Meriem looked up at him in surprise. The Hon. Morison grinned
sheepishly.

"I couldn't sleep," he explained, "and was going for a bit of a ride
when I chanced to see you out here, and I thought you'd like to join
me. Ripping good sport, you know, night riding. Come on."

Meriem laughed. The adventure appealed to her.

"All right," she said.

Hanson swore beneath his breath. The two led their horses from the
garden to the gate and through it. There they discovered Hanson's
mount.

"Why here's the trader's pony," remarked Baynes.

"He's probably down visiting with the foreman," said Meriem.

"Pretty late for him, isn't it?" remarked the Hon. Morison. "I'd hate
to have to ride back through that jungle at night to his camp."

As though to give weight to his apprehensions the distant lion roared
again. The Hon. Morison shivered and glanced at the girl to note the
effect of the uncanny sound upon her. She appeared not to have noticed
it.

A moment later the two had mounted and were moving slowly across the