Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-11-29
CHAPTER XV.-Continued.

A pause ensued. disturbed only by the
fluttering of the wOman's breath; for the
space of thirty pulse beats nothing hap
pened. Then Naraini's fingers closed like
bands of steel about Amber's left wrist.
See" she cried. in voice of awe,
willie the bracelets shivered and clashed
upon her outstretched arm. The Eye.
my king. the Eye.
Amber shut his teeth upon an eXclama-
ton of amaze For just above the far.
dark mountain ridge, uncannily brilliant
in the void of the pale. mOonlit TRINA
ment light had blazed out--a vivid
emerald light, winking and stabbing the
darkness with shafts Of seemingly super
natural radiance.
And thy ring. Iord-look. The Token
The great emerald seemed to have
caught and to be answering the light
Naraini called the Eye: in the stones
depths an internal fire leaped and died
and leaped again, now luridly blazing.
now fltfully a-quiver as though about 10
vanish. again strong and steady: even as
the light of the strange emerald star
above the mountains ebbed and flowed
through the night
Naraini shuddered and cried out guard
eddy for very fear by Indur, it is even
born''-she caught his sleeve and forcibly
pulled down his hand-'tempt not the
Unseen farther. And put away this
Token. lest a more terrible thing befall
us. There be mysteries that even we of
the initiate may not comprehend, my lord
1t is not we'll to NEEDLE with the I'M
known"
The ring was off his finger now and the
woman was examining it into his coat
pocket with tremulous hands. And where
the Eye had Shone the sky was blank.
! They stood in darkness. Amber mute
with perplexity. Naraini clinging to his
arm and shaking like reed in the wind
Now am l frightened lord of my
heart! Lead me back to the garden. for
am but woman and afraid. Who am 1.
Naraini, to see the Eye? What am |.
weak woman. to trespass upon the Mys-
teries" | am very much afraid. do
thou take me hence and comfort me, my
king. She drew his arm about her
| waist. firm. round and slender, and held
it SO. her body yielding subtly to his, her
| head dropping YEARLY upon his shoulder
They moved slowly from the turret
and, back along the lighted walks of the
garden. the woman apI -ently content.
Amber preoccupied--to tell the truth,
more troubled than he would have been
willing to confess. AS for the intimacy
of their attitude. he was temporarily
| careless of it: 1t meant less to him than
the woman guessed. 1t seems likely that
she inferred conquest from his indtf-
ference, for when they had come back to
the tank of the gold fish beneath the
Ddnldn size S1lppou lIOIll ljiS eIIiui dHu
confronted him with a face afire with
citation.
See now how thou art altogether con-
troverted Lalji.' she cried, joyfully. NO
longer canst thou persist that thou art
other than thy true self. the lord of
Naraini's heart. the king returned to his
kingdom For who would dare give
the lie to the Eye? Indeed. she
continued. with low. signing laugh, Il
myself had begun to doubt. my faith
horno and nv tDV
peated denials. but now | knoV thee. Did
not the Bell foretelI that the Eye should
be seen Of men only when Har Dyal Rut-
ton had returned to his kingdom, and
then only when he wore the Token: Even
as it was said. SO has 1t been And
| now art thou prepared to co.?
"Whither?"
ITO Kathia war-even to the threshold
of the Gateway? There is yet time.
before the dawn. and it were wise to go
quickly, my king: but for one night more
is the Gateway open to receive thee.
Thou didst see the saddled stations In
the courtyard? They wait there for thee.
to bear thee to kathiawar. - Nay.
It were better that thou shouldst wait.
mayhap for the hours be few before the
rising of the sun. Go then to thy rest,
heart of my heart, since thou must leave
me- and this night we shall ride, thou
and l, together to the Gateway"
80 be it, he assented, with grave
inclination of his head. Convinced Of the
thanklesSneSS of any further attempt TO
convince the woman against her will. he
gave it up, and was grateful for the re-
spite promised him. In twelve or eighteen
hours he might accomplish much-with
the aid of Labertouche. At worst he
would find some means to communicate
with the Farrells and then seek safety
| for himself in flight or hiding until what
he had come to term the ID Cate
| way-thing' should be closed and he be
free to resume his strange wooing. Some
way, somehow. he could contrive to extri-
! cate himself and his beloved.
| Therefore he told the woman BE it
So o, Queen! Now l CO.
and leave me- she pouted prettily.
| with no word but that, my king? Am l
not worth a caress-not even when I beg
for it,?
| He smiled down at her. tolerant and
amused. and impulsively caught her to
him. THE points we'll taken," he said.
| Decidedly you're worth 1t. Naraini. And
| IL you were not, the show was"'
! And he kissed and left her, all in a
| breath.