The Key West citizen., 1940-11-15

J
into a wide upland valley. At first
the girl was more excited than
frightened. After its immediate
fury. the storm had slackened
somewhat.
But as time passed and the ami
NAL kept on at a terrific pace as
if it were demented, Lynn began
to wonder what was going to be-
come of her. She could do nothing
with her beast, and to jump from
the animals back. she felt, would
be like jumping from a speeding
express train.
At dusk the storm died down
and the stars appeared. But the
strange, mad drive within the
camel Kept on. They were climb
ing now into a higher desert
mountain region. During the night
they passed near cluster of yur-
tas with several camels tethered
nearby. Lynn hoped her beast
might join them, but it kept or
blindly, its neck stretched out as
if it were being led by ar invis-
ible cord.
At dawn Lynn saw she was be-
ing taken into yet wilder and
higher country where spring had
barely touched the soil. A herd of
antelope ran ahead of them for a
distance and then disappeared at
one side of the course.
She saw an altar on a hillock
a.
up beside it. She screamed to him
as she passed, but he stared stu
pidly and let her disappear from
sight. The terrible journey was
telling on Lynn yet she could not
see that her mount had lessened
its pace at all. She planned at the
next sight of human beings to
jump from the animals back and
take the consequence.
Rescue
THE plan had barely formulated
L when she heard a call. She
turned and looked back. A man
on a black camel was following
her. He shouted something and
raised his rifle. She recognized
him.
Temu DARN! He rode the black
camel that had killed a man and
run away.
As he held the 1if1e trained upon
her. Lynn thought for a moment
that Temu meant to kill her.
Then, common sense returned and
she knew he was aiming at her
mount. She drew herself Up and
crouched. The bullet did not come
Immediately. But when the beast
made a turn, following the con-
tour of the draw, Temu shot.
The animal grunted and pitched
forward. Lynn fell clear in a
stretch of sand.
Temu had come up. He dis
mounted and ran to Lynn. "Are
you hurt?"
She shook her head. She was
tr m blin g uncontrollably. He
knelt before her, beads of per-
spiration on his upper lip. He took
a deep breath.
Il hope I'm never again called
upon to do such thing. But my
camel was at the end of his re-
sources: he could follow you no
longer"
Lynn dropped back and stretch
ed out her wracked body, so
weary that she was barely con-
scious. Temu looked at her mo-
ment before ne gently turned her
over and maSSaged her aching
back. Then he bade her sleep.
In the late afternoon he awak-
ened her and made her drink tea
with parched barley stirred into
it. He. explained that he and his
men had been closing in upon
Dicks caravan when the storm
broke.
MY camel followed you. You
see" he smiled. st does not do
any good for you to run away; l
always find you. You cannot es-
cape your destiny"
She responded, I'm not defeat
ed yet" He had moved her, she
observed, to a spot from which
she could not see the dead beast
and had placed her on a fur robe.
She looked at his black camel
standing near, stiff and immobile.
making none of the camellious
snarls and gurgles which signify
well-being.
What possessed my animal?"
she asked.
She went berserk. They do
that sometimes. inexplicably, and
travel blindly for days until they
fall dead. No native will inter-
fere with a camel thus possessed,
as they think it would bring bad
luck
See what it brought YOU" she
said, signifying herself, his spent
animal. and the desolate land
Scape about them.
You're not bad luck to me. no
matter what the appearance. He
smiled as he said il. and she sud-
denly remembered that Sherlock
was dead and she would have to
tell him.
He looked at his riding beast.
then went over and gave It feed
" IA ~ RCoCs - AEAASCA ~ Cdks
He came back and sat down be-
side Lynn.
This has been a terrific Jour-
ney. We must have come well
over fifty miles since the storm"
Lynn marvelled. yet she knew
that camelS had been known to
travel at high rates of speed.
Were you expecting TO capture
Dick and his men?" she asked.
That was our hope. but the
storm shot our plan TO pieces.
Now. l don't know what win hap
pen. Our present concern is with
our personal safety"
What became of Peggy" she
asked.
Returned to Nanking in that
bombing plane that was tempo