The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1920-02-06
CHAPTER XII.
The Fiiuht of Werper.

After Werper had arranged the
dummy in his bed and sneaked out
into the darkness of the village be-
meath the rear wall of his tent he had
gone directly to the hut in which Jane
Clayton was held captive.
The Belgian, being one of Achmet
Zek's principal lieutenants, might nat
urally go whore he wished within or
without the village, and so the sentry
did not question his right to enter the
hut with the white woman prisoner.
Within, Werper called in French and
in a low whisper: Lady GFeystoke !!
1t is /, NJ. Frecoult. Where are your
But there was no response. Hastily
the man felt around the interior, crop
ing blindly drought the darkness with
outstretched hands. There was no one
within
Werper's establishment surpassed
words. He was on the point of
stepping without to question the SEN
try, when his eyes, becoming accustom-
ed to the dark, discovered a blotch of
lesser blackness near the base of the
rear wall of the hut. Examination re-
vealed the fact that the blotch was an
opening cut in the wall. 1t was large
enought to permit the passage of his
body, and, assured as he was that
Lady Greystoke had passed out
through the aperture in an attempt to
escape the village, he lost no time in
availing himself of the same avenue /;
but neither did he lose time in a fruit
| less search for Jane Clayton.
His own life depended upon the
chance of his eluding or outdistancing
Achmet Eek when that worthy should
| His original plan had contemplated
connivance in the escape of Lady Grey
stoke for good and sufficient reasons.
Accompanied by a titled Englishwom-
an whom he had rescued from fright
full fate, and his identity vouched for
name of Frecoult, he had looked for
ward, and not without reason, to the
active assistance of the British from
the moment that he came in contact
with their first outpost.
But now that Lady Greystoke had
disappeared, though he still looked to-
ward the east for hope his chances
were lessened, and another, subsidiary
| design, completely dashed. From the
moment that he had first laid eyes upon
Jane Clayton he had nursed within his
/ breast a secret passion for the beauti-
full American wife of the English lord
and when Achmet Zek's discovery of
the jewels had necessitated flight, the
Belgian had dreamed, in his planning,
/ of future in which he might convince
Lady Greystoke that her husband was
dead, and by playing upon her graft
tude win her for himself.
AT that part of the village farthest
from the gates Werper discovered that
two or three long poles, taken from a
nearby pile which had been collected
for the construction of huts, had been
leaned against the top of the palisade
forming precarious, though not i'm
possible, avenue of escape.
Rightly, he inferred that thus had
Lady Greystoke found the means tC
scale the wall, nor did he lose even q
moment in following her lead. Once
in the jungle he struck out directly
eastward.
A few miles south of him, Jane Clay.
ton lay painting among the branches OF
Il tree in which she had taken refuge
from proving and hungry lioness.
Her escape from the village had beer
much easier Than she had anticipated
The knife which she had used to cut
her way through the brush wall OF
the hut 10 freedom, she had found
sticking in the wall of her prison
doubtless left there by accident wheI
Il former tenant had vacated the prem
ises.
For an hour she had followed the
old game trail toward the south, unit
there fell upon her trained hearing the
stealthy padding of stalking beas
behind her. The nearest tree gave hel
instant sanctuary, for she was too
wise in the ways of the jungle tt
chance her safety for a moment aftel
discovering that she was being hunted
Werper, with better success, trav
eled slowly onward until dawn. when
to his chagrin. he discovered mount