ebecca away from you very soon!' she went on. 'I
have watched him."'

Fred smiled about as comfortably as a martyr on the grid. The presence
of the dusky damsel, confirmed by her smell behind him, made him touchy
on the subject of sex.

"Presently she said to me, 'I have my own affairs that will adjust
themselves all the better for their absence when I get to British East.
As for you, they will simply report you to the authorities for raiding
those cattle of Brown's. Can you imagine that creature Brown forgiving
you? He will have you thrown in jail! Why wait? But we must not
leave the Goanese or the other porters, and we must hurry! You go,'
she said, 'and send the Goanese and the rest of the porters on board!'

"So I did go. I kicked de Sousa awake, and he cursed me, because my
toe landed once or twice on his thigh where the bullet wounded him. I
drove him on board, and she put him to work with Kamarajes getting up
the sail. Then I went off to get those cursed porters. I could not
find them! The dogs had gone to the village, to find women I don't
doubt! I tell you what I would do to them if they were mine!"

"Never mind that!" Fred cut in. We could all guess what form the
punishment would take. "Get on with the tale! You couldn't find the
porters. What next?"

"I decided to leave the dogs behind, and serve them right! I went back
to the dhow in a great hurry. She was gone! Vanished! Disappeared as
if the lake had opened up and swallowed her! I could just see the sail
in the distance. I shouted! No answer! I shouted again. I heard
Rebecca call to me! Then I heard laughter--Lady Isobel Saffren
Waldon's laughter! Gassharamminy! I will run red-hot skewers into
that woman when I catch her! Do you see how she has vengeance on
Rebecca? Do you see now why she took sides between me and Kamarajes
and de Sousa? Do you see how she has plotted? What will she do now?
What Will she do?"

He began to pace up and down again furiously, shaking both fists at the
unresponsive stars.

"She will do Rebecca an injury! She will give that girl to de Sousa or
to that old Kamarajes! We shall never catch them! Gassharamminy! Oh,
Absalom! You should have fired when I told you! That she-dog has a
trick of some kind up her sleeve yet! How shall we catch her? Why do
we wait? Give me that rifle! I will take a canoe and go after them
alone! You do not know what Greek spirit is! I am American
sometim