underlying such behaviour she was absolutely ignorant, for they
saw no neighbours except perhaps Elvesdon; nor even had they, it is
certain that to a stranger and a relative of those concerned, nothing
would have been whispered. Besides, was not the whole thing now matter
of ancient history?

As they rode along in the bosky shadiness of the deep kloof bottom, the
shouts of the beaters on either side, the sudden clangour of the dogs as
they struck the spoor of a recently alarmed buck, then the crack of a
shot down at the farther end, it seemed to Evelyn Carden that the
experience was wholly delightful and exhilarating. She could hardly
have told why--but it was so. She was not so very young, and she had
had some experiences of life. Perhaps she preferred not to tell herself
the `why.'

Thornhill, on his part, was not thinking of her at all by this time, or
if so it was only to wish she had elected to accompany someone else,
which at first sight seems blackly ungrateful of him. Still less was he
thinking of the sport, unless in a mechanical way. But Manamandhla,
moving parallel with himself some forty yards distant through the thick,
high bush; Manamandhla visible to himself, but both invisible to the
rest of the on-driving line, how easy to have mistaken him for a buck--
to have _mistaken_ him. It would be rather the act of a Johnny Raw, but
then, men of ripe judgment and lifelong experience had been known to
make similar mistakes. Surely such a chance would not occur again. If
only Evelyn had not volunteered to accompany him.

A fell, lurid obsession had seized upon this man's mind, yet not so as
to obscure his judgment, only to do away utterly with all sense of ruth
or compunction. This calm, patient savage, who had reappeared--had
risen, as it were, from the very dead, to blood-suck him--to batten upon
him for the rest of his natural life--had got upon even his strong
nerves. He was ageing, he told himself, and all through this. Again
the Zulu's broad back presented a magnificent mark for a charge of
Treble A. There would be an end of the incubus, and `_accidents will
happen_.' But then--there was Evelyn riding immediately behind him.

"Well, Mr Thornhill. We seem to have drawn this fairly blank, too,"
said her cheerful, pleasing voice, as the bush thinned out in front of
them. "Let's see what they've got There was a shot in front, wasn't
there?"

Elvesdon and Edala were standing, waiting for the