The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1918-04-05

straight lnro che eyes Of the Hangar
Rewa Guneai
slow id you get hereT he asked
In English.
"Any fool could learn the password
into this campl Come over here, So
bib. bring word from her."
The ground was criss-crossed like a
mans palm by the shadows Of tent
ropes. The Hangar led him to where
the tents were forty feet apart and
none was likely to overhear them.
There he turned like flash.
"She sends you thisw he Kissed.
In that same instant King was fight
ing for his life. In another second
they were down together among the
tent-pegs, King holding the Rangers
wrist with both hands and struggling
to break 1t, and the Hangar striving
for another stroke. The dagger he
held had missed Kings ribs by so
little that his skin yet tingled from
it's touch. 1t was dagger with bronze
blade and gold hilt-her dagger. 1t
was her perfume in the air.
They rolled over and over, breathing
hard. King wanted to think before
he gave an alarm, and he could not
think with that scent in his nostrils
and creeping into his. lungs. Even in
the stress of fighting he wondered how
the Rangar's clothes and turban had
come to be drenched In it. He admit
ted to himself afterward that 1t was
nothing else than jealousy that sug-
gested to him to make the Hangar
prisoner and hand him over to the
mullah. q
That would have been a ridiculous
thing to do, for it would have forced
his own betrayal to the mullah. But
as If the Hangar had read his mind,
he suddenly redoubled his efforts and
King, weary to the point Of sickness,
had to redouble his own or die. Per-
haps the jealousy helped put venom in
his effort, for his strength came back
to him as madman's does. The Ran
gar gave moan and let the knife fall.
And because Jealousy is poison King
did the wrong thing then. He pounced
on the knife instead of on the Hangar.
He could have questioned him-knelt
on him and perhaps forced explana-
tons from him. But with a sudden
swift effort like snakes the Hangar
freed himself and was up and gone be-
fore King could struggle to his feet
gone like shadow among shadows.
King got up and felt himself all over,
for they had fought on stony ground
and he was bruised. But bruises faded
Into nothing, and WEAKNESS as well, as
his mind began to dwell on the new
complication to Lis problem.
It was plain that the moment he
had returned from his message to the
Khyber the Hangar had been sent on
this new murderous mission. Yasmini
had never believed her letter would be
treated seriously by the authorities,
and had only sent it in the hope of
fooling him and undermining his de-
termination. Perhaps she saw her
own peril. Perhaps she contemplated
gosh what contingency perhaps
she contemplated boiling into India
with story Of her own, and leaving
the nullah to his own devices! Would
she Care escape into India and leave
himself alive behind her?
There was an alternative, the very
thought Of which made him fearfully
uneasy, and vet brought thrill with
1t. In all Eastern lands, love scorned
takes to the dagger. He had half be-
lieved her when she swore she loved
him! The man who could imagine
himself loved by Yasmini and not be
thrilled to his core would be inhuman,
whatever reason and caution and caste
and creed might whisper in imagina-
TONS wake.
Keeling from fatigue Che felt like a
man who had been racked, for the Ran
CARS strength was nearly unbeliev-
able), he started toward where the
mullah sat glowering in the cave
mouth. He found the man who had
carried his bag asleep at the foot Of
the ramp, and taking the bag away
from him, let him lie there. And It
took him five minutes to drag his hurt,
weary bones up the ramp, for the fight
had taken more out Of MIN than he
had guessed at first.
The mullah glared at him but let him
by without a word. 1t was by the.fire
at the back of the cave, where he
stopped to dip water from the null
labs enormous crock, that the next
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