4 African Mysteries: Zoraida, The Great White Queen, The Eye of Istar & The Veiled Man (Illustrated Edition). William Le Queux

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СКАЧАТЬ advance, dealing blows swift and terrible among a people who little dream of the approach of an enemy, and are entirely unprepared.”

      “Hast thou actually a sufficient force to attack the almost impregnable kasbah of Agadez?” I asked incredulously.

      “Yes. In two days the green standard will be raised, the drum will be sent round to the three other camps, and with one accord shall we sweep onward to the great stronghold of the Ahír.”

      “And thou desirest that I should become a Bedouin of the Ennitra — an outlaw of the Sahara?” I said.

      “Thou must!” she answered, with enthusiasm, her slim lingers closing tightly upon my hand. “Dost thou not see that I have obtained a respite for thee, only on condition that thou throwest in thy lot with us?”

      “What is this mysterious influence which Hadj Absalam declareth hath been transferred unto me?” I inquired, eager to ascertain the meaning of the strange words she had so boldly addressed to the robber Sheikh.

      But she laughed, and, evading my question, answered with light coquetry —

      “The power that draweth us together; the influence that causeth us to love each other.”

      “But why didst thou urge thy Ruler to compel me to become a freebooter?”

      “It was my last extremity,” she said. “I pleaded for thee, and — almost failed. To fight beside us is thine only chance of reaching Agadez, and of finding he whom thou seekest.”

      “To be near unto thee I am prepared to join thy people, even though they are mine enemies,” I said, as she looked into my eyes with trusting gaze.

      “Although thou wilt be near me, thou must never seek to have speech with me,” she exclaimed quickly. “We meet here at imminent risk, but we must not again invite the wrath of those who desire thy death. To thee I must be as a stranger, for remember that thou art a Roumi, and thy very glance defileth mine unveiled face!” and she laughed lightly.

      “Ah! the religious prejudices of thy people are indeed curious,” I said. “How long must we affect this estrangement?”

      “Until Agadez hath fallen, and thine errand be accomplished.”

      “But if thou hast the Crescent in thy possession, canst thou not snap thy bonds and escape with me?” I suggested. “Surely thy place is not upon the field of battle, amid the carnage that must inevitably ensue from such a combat?”

      “Impossible!” she answered, moving uneasily, and wafting to me the sweet perfume that clung to her draperies. She was agitated, for her hand holding mine trembled violently, and her lips were tightly compressed. “The Bond of Blood bindeth me more firmly than fetters of steel, and if I attempted to desert the camp, the death of both of us would be inevitable. No! To Agadez must we advance. From to-day thou art an outlaw of the plains, and I am thy leader! Obey me, but speak not; for upon thy silence and obedience dependeth thy life. Hidden in my possession the Crescent will remain until such time as thou wilt require it; then, once inside the Great Mosque, the secret knowledge will be imparted unto thee, and will peradventure be of profit.”

      “It grieveth me sorely to think that thou, the woman I adore, art the head of this fierce band of murderous marauders, and wilt lead them to commit merciless massacre and pillage, to — ”

      “Ah, no!” she cried, raising both her hands as if to arrest my words. “Reproach me not, O Ce-cil! I cannot bear it from thee! Thinkest thou that were I not compelled, I would be the cause of this widespread death and desolation; thinkest thou that I would urge onward these wild hordes to deeds horrible and revolting? Thou believest I have a heart of stone, that I have no woman’s tenderness, that — that I, a woman of the Desert, am” — and, unable to complete her sentence, she burst into a passionate torrent of tears.

      “No, Zoraida, I blame thee not,” I tenderly hastened to reassure her. “I know there are circumstances connected with thine hidden past of which I have no knowledge, therefore I love thee fondly, awaiting the time when thou art enabled to renounce thy people and become my wife.”

      “What canst thou think of a woman such as I?” she sobbed bitterly. “Even to thee, so faithful as thou hast been, I am compelled to still preserve my secret, appearing in thine eyes as one to whom the clash of arms is sweeter than the music of the derbouka, and the wail of the vanquished the pleasantest sound upon mine ear!”

      “But thy position is not of thine own choosing,” I said, quietly endeavouring to soothe her.

      “No!” she cried wildly, starting up. “I hate it all! Though each raid enricheth me with gold and jewels of great price, yet there is a curse upon the treasure, obtained, as it is, by the relentless slaughter of the weak. Ah, Ce-cil! if thou couldst only know how acutely I suffer, how these jewels upon me glitter with the fire of deadly hatred as each one telleth its mute but horrible story, a story of rapine and murder for which I — the woman thou lovest, the woman who would willingly give her life for thee — am responsible! Is not my existence one of hollow shams, of feigned daring and wretched duplicity? I loathe myself; and were it not that I look forward to happiness with thee, I would — I would end it all with this!” and she drew from her breast a small keen dagger, with hilt encrusted with turquoises, that she always kept concealed there.

      “Speak not of that,” I said firmly. “Place thy knife in its sheath. I love thee, Zoraida, I trust in thee, and none shall ever come between us.”

      “Dost thou place thy faith in me implicitly, notwithstanding that I appear in thine eyes debased, and am unable to give thee explanation?” she asked, half credulously, through her blinding tears.

      The jewels upon her flashed with a brilliancy that was dazzling, and the sweet odours of her apartment seemed intoxicating.

      “I do,” I answered, fervently kissing her with a mad, fierce passion. “Indeed, had it not been for thine exertions, my bones would long ago have been stripped by the vultures.”

      “Ah! my Amîn, thou too art performing for me a mission, the result of which will effect stranger things than thou hast ever dreamed,” she exclaimed earnestly; adding, “Our story-tellers relate wondrous things, but none have described such marvels as thou shalt behold. I told thee in Algiers that I was in peril of death, and that thou couldst avert the danger that threatened. These words I now repeat, and trust in thee to save me.”

      “To save thee I will again face our enemies fearlessly, and strive to reach the imam who holdeth the Secret, even though I have been told that the Omen of the Camel’s Hoof hath been revealed unto me,” I said, entranced by her beauty, and smiling in an endeavour to chase away the gloomy shadow that seemed to have settled upon her.

      “Yes,” she answered, slowly winding both arms about my neck, and looking up to me with big, tear-stained eyes. “The mark, to thee invisible, is upon thy brow, yet hath not that presage of evil already been fulfilled in thy failure to elucidate the Mystery of the Crescent? Is it not possible that henceforward good fortune and success may attend thine efforts?”

      “Truly, O my beloved One of Wondrous Beauty!” I said, “thy words renew hope within me, and restore confidence. I will seek the imam of the Mesállaje, and at any risk learn the hidden wonders.”

      In silence she gazed at me with a look of unutterable sadness. СКАЧАТЬ