CHAPTER TWENTY THREE.
NED IS OBSTINATE.
Tim acted his part well. He strolled out from his "panthry," andsauntered along to where the chief of the guard stood gazing at himsternly; and trusting to the pretty good smattering of Malay he hadpicked up, he said quietly: "Going to be on guard all night?" The Malaynodded.
"Sorry for you," said Tim, beginning to fill his pipe. "I did sixmonths' soldiering myself when I was a mere lad, and it was hard workkeeping awake on sentry-go."
He struck a match and lit his pipe, lighting up the scowling face of theguard and his own good-humoured phiz.
"I say," he continued, "next boat you gentlemen overhaul, look sharpafter the matches, if they've brought any up from Malacca, for we'regetting short, and I don't care to take to the flint and steel."
Tim nodded and went on, smoking, to make the round of the place,stopping to say a word or two to the other armed men in his easygood-tempered way, seasoning his remarks with a joke or two, while thelightning flickered in a bank of black clouds across the river.
By degrees he made his way back to the head-man, and began to talkconfidentially.
"I say," he said, "I suppose we shall all be big people now, when therajah has married me young lady."
The Malay laughed softly, contemptuously. "Oh yes," he said. "Perhapshe'll make you Muntrie or Tumongong."
"Get out, making fun of a boy," said Tim, good-humouredly. "Well,good-luck to you, I've nearly finished my pipe. I'm tired, and going into sleep. Take care of us. Good-night."
The Malay wished him good-night, and Tim turned to go, but stopped andpulled out his pouch.
"Have a bit o' tibakky!" he said. "It's the master's. Some the rajahgave him."
The Malay nodded eagerly, and Tim gave him two or three pipefuls.
"Here," he said, "I've got a lot. The master don't like it, and tellsme to help myself. I'll fetch a bit for the other boys."
Tim lounged off, and at the end of a few minutes, with a small basketmade of thin strips of bamboo, and still smoking, sauntered up to thehead-man.
"Call 'em up," he said, in a low voice. "Don't talk loud; they've notgone to bed yet indoors."
The Malay gave Tim a peculiar searching look, but the Irishman wastapping the ash out of his pipe and putting it in his pocket, afterwhich he took a brass box from the basket just as the Malay uttered alow guttural sound, and his men stole up silently one by one.
"Whisht!" said Tim. "Tibakky;" and he divided about half the contentsof the box, the leaf being eagerly received and deposited in a fold ofthe sarong.
"Whisht!" said Tim again, after a stealthy glance back at the house, andputting the tobacco back, he drew out a bottle. "Will you drink the newranee's health?"
His question was received in utter silence.
"No!" said Tim. "I thought you wouldn't, and I'm sorry for yourreligion. Well, I will. Long life to my darling young misthress!"
He took out the cork, passed his hand over the top of the bottle, andthen applying it to his lips, took a long gurgling draught, swallowingpretty well a pint before he lowered the flask, the Malays gazinglongingly at him as he drank.
"I'm sorry for you, boys," said Tim; "for that's a drop of good stuff,"and he replaced the bottle. "But, look here," he said, with a laugh,"left from up-stairs;" and holding up the basket, he took out a cake orsweet of the kind cleverly concocted by the Malay women, and began toeat. "Any one do a bit in this way!" he continued, with his mouth full.
If he had offered the bottle now, they would have drunk from it to aman, and after a momentary pause the chief of the guard took a cake fromthe basket, broke off a scrap, removed his betel-nut, tasted the sweet,took a good bite, and uttered a low guttural order; which resulted ineach man taking a cake, the last man growing excited from the beliefthat they would not go round; but there was just one each, and thehead-man spoke again, with the result that his men went back to theirposts eating greedily, while Tim stood in the darkness trembling withexcitement.
"Well," he said, fearing to betray himself; "now then for my snooze.Good-night!"
The Malay laid his hand upon his shoulder. "Stop!" he said, "let metaste from the bottle."
"Don't apologise," said Tim, wilfully misunderstanding him. "I wasalways the man to respect any one who stood by his religion, and so wasmy mother before me. Good-night."
Tim turned into the house. "Oh, murther," he muttered, returning to hisown tongue; "the wine might have shpoilt the docthor's rat poison. Whatan eshcape!"
"Well?" whispered Mr Braine and the doctor in a breath, as Tim appearedlooking white and scared.
"Oh, they've tuk it, ivery mother's son of thim, gintlemen; an' if theyall die, docthor, don't go and say it was me doing when I'm not here."
"Die? Nonsense!"
"Oh no, it isn't, sor, and I've made a dhreadful mistake."
"Mistake? Failed?" cried Mr Braine, horrified.
"Sure no, sor, I haven't failed; I've succayded too much."
"But you said you had made a mistake, man."
"Yes, sor. I tuk wan of the cakes meself."
The announcement was received with a blank look of despair.
"Sure sor, don't stand looking at me loike that, please. Thin aren't yegoing to give me an anecdote?"
"No antidote would be available, my poor fellow. But how could you makesuch a blunder? I showed you so carefully."
"Sure ye did, sor, but I was a bit flurried."
"You ate a cake?"
"Oh yes, sor," said Tim, dismally. "I ate wan, and I didn't taste theshtuff till it was down."
"But you couldn't taste it, man."
"Sure, sor, but I did quite sthrong," groaned Tim, sinking on one of thedivans.
"But tell me, how do you feel?"
"Horrid bad, sor; shlapy, and it's creeping up me legs. Ye'll have tocarry me or lave me behind."
"Whatever can we do?" said Mr Braine.
"Perhaps exertion and the night air will revive him," said the doctor."I'll give him something too."
He hastily mixed a draught, which Tim drank gratefully, and then layback with Frank supporting his head.
"How long will it be before the potion acts on the men?" said MrBraine.
"Very few minutes before it begins, but of course not on all alike.Some one must steal down and watch."
"I'll go," said Frank, and creeping down to the lower rooms--the shedsused by the women and Tim--he stood close to the door, and then bydegrees from bush to bush, on and on, till in less than half an hour hewas back with the expectant group.
"They are all sleeping heavily," he said. "How is Tim?"
His father pointed to the divan, where the man lay apparentlyinsensible, with Mr Greig bathing his head.
"It is all over," said Braine, sadly; "we cannot leave the poor fellow."
"Oh!" cried Frank, dashing at the man and shaking him violently.
"All right. Moind me head, Masther Frank! I'm ready, sor."
"Can you walk?"
"Can I walk? Hark at him," said Tim, drowsily. "I'll show ye all."
"Here, we'll try," said Mr Braine. "Take these. Put the revolver inhis breast. Can you carry a gun, man?"
"For sartain," said Tim, stupidly.
"Then ready. Not a moment is to be lost," whispered Mr Braine. "Leadthe way, Frank, and if we by chance are separated, every one is to makefor the tall clump of trees this side of the stockade."
"And chirp like this," said Frank, imitating a bird. "That will bringthe boat."
"Then forward. Not a word."
They stepped out on to the veranda, and gazed down into the blackdarkness, with the lightning still quivering and flickering in thedistance.
All was perfectly still in the garden for a few moments, and then therewas a heavy stertorous breathing, which sounded louder as they descendedand passed quickly on down to the gate; Tim staggering a little, butkeeping step for step with the doctor, who supported him by the arm.
Frank led as he had been instructed, and heard the heavy breathing toright and left; but it was not until he reached the entrance that hereally came in contact with the guards, for there lay one right acrossthe path, and another had his arms folded on the bamboo top rail of thegate, and hindered further progress.
To step over the prostrate man was easy, but this other completelybarred the way. Frank waited till his father came up, and he heard himdraw his breath heavily, and stand thinking.
"We cannot stand over trifles now," said Mr Braine. "Desperateremedies are our only hope;" and, after hesitating a moment or two, hegently passed his arm round the soft lithe body of the Malay, lifted himfrom the gate, and let him sink to the ground beside his companion.
Those were critical moments, and all looked on trembling; but the manonly muttered a little, and, with a heavy sigh, went off into a deepersleep.
The party stood listening for a few moments, and then started for thestockade, in and out among houses and gardens, where all was silent savethe occasional cackle and movement of the game-fowls many of the peoplekept. Twice they heard voices, but the place seemed to be pretty wellplunged in slumber, and, with his spirits rising moment by moment, Frankhurried on, with Amy close behind him, till the houses were left behindwithout a soul being encountered; but now, as they neared the river,there were other dangers to fear.
Of the reptiles Frank thought little. The danger was from the naga thatwas always patrolling the stream night and day, especially the former,on the look-out for trading vessels trying to slip by in the darknessand in the silence of the night. Knowing how sound travelled, he was inagony lest there should be word or whisper to excite the Malays'suspicion.
But fortune favoured them. He caught sight of the dark hulls of theprahus, but the boat was invisible, and as Frank crept on along theriver-bank listening to the strange sighings and splashings of theriver, he at last made out the great tree beneath which he had rescuedNed from a horrible death, and a quarter of a mile farther on, throughthe wet untrampled shore-growth, where twice over he heard the rushingand splash of some reptile, he paused by a thick bed of reeds and grass,with bushes overhanging the river's edge.
Here he stopped till the others joined him--Tim still staggering on withthe doctor's help--and then moved forward again by a tall palm.
He listened, and everything but the splashing of fish and reptiles wasstill. There was no dipping of oar or creak of bamboo against wood.
Suddenly a low chirping sound rose from the midst of the party, and wasanswered from a dozen yards distant. Then came the rustling of some oneforcing his way through the bushes, and Ned stood among them, silentlygrasping hand after hand.
"I was afraid they'd got you, Frank," he said.
"No; it's all right."
"But where's my uncle?"
There was silence, and then Mr Braine explained their position.
"I see," said Ned, firmly; "but we cannot stir from here without him."
"No; we are going to get him out at any cost."
"How?" said Ned.
"Hist! speak lower," whispered Mr Braine. "Drop down in the boat tothe point nearest his house, and there part of us land."
"But you say he is guarded."
"Yes. The case is desperate. But, first of all, let's get on board."
"No," said Ned; "you are going to forsake him. I will not go."
"I give you my word as a gentleman, sir," said Mr Braine, coldly.
Ned said no more, but acting as guide, led the way down to the boat,where, with Hamet's help, the ladies, arms, and ammunition were placedon board, and they all followed after, literally rolling Tim in over theside, to lie perfectly helpless at the bottom.
"Safe so far," said Mr Braine, as they crouched together in thefore-part, while the ladies were under the thatch awning shivering withdread.
"Catch hold, Ned. You too, Hamet," whispered Frank, who, rememberinghis own sufferings, thrust some food into the fasting pair's hands.
"Now," said Mr Braine, "there is no better plan. About three hundredyards below the big tree, by that cluster of palms."
"The prahus are near there," said Frank.
"A full hundred yards lower, boy," said his father. "You lads will keepthe boat while we land."
"I am coming too," said Ned.
"No," whispered Mr Braine, angrily. "Take my orders, and keep the wayof retreat open for us."
"I am not going to leave my uncle in that danger without coming tohelp," said Ned, stubbornly.
"Then come," said Mr Braine, angrily, but admiring the boy'sdetermination all the same. "Now then, revolvers only, and they areonly to be used if cunning fails. How many do we muster if it comes toa fight?"
"Hamet will come, father," said Frank.
"To save master? Yes," said the Malay, quietly.
"Four, Ned five," said Mr Braine. "Oh, if that poor fellow had notmade the mistake. He is brave as--as--"
"An Irishman," said the doctor.
"Yes, as an Irishman or a Scot."
"But I don't think he's so very bad, father," whispered Frank.--"Here, Isay, Tim. There's a fight."
"Foight? Eh!" said Tim, struggling up, and rubbing his eyes.
"Hush! whisper."
"But who said there was going to be a foight?"
"I did."
"Where? Come on!"
"Hush! Don't speak so loud. He's right enough, father."
"Then push the boat carefully out of this wilderness, and in Heaven'sname let's go."
Hamet unfastened a rattan line, and the boat began to glide downward atonce, with bush and leaf scratching and rustling against side andthatch, till they were clear of the dark vegetable tunnel into which ithad been thrust the previous morning. Then taking a pole, the Malaypunted it along close in-shore, thrusting the metal-shod staff quietlydown till, when they had gone about a hundred yards in the profounddarkness beneath the trees, the point struck on something hard, wheninstantly there was a tremendous eddying swirl, the boat rocked, andHamet said quietly, "Crocodile."
A couple of minutes later Mr Braine pointed to the spot where he wishedto land, and the boat was cleverly brought in close to the bank, here sosteep that it lay invisible from the shore, the overhanging boughshiding it from any one upon the river.
"Now, Frank," whispered his father, "there must be absolute silence.Not a word must be spoken. You and Mr Greig must keep the boat. Youwill be sure to hear us coming, so stand ready to cast off."
"Yes, father."
"Right," said Greig.
"And if matters come to the worst, let the boat drop down the river.Save the ladies, and try to get help."
"Yes, father," said Frank huskily. "Are you going to tell them what youare about to do?"
"No. Now then, ashore! Quick!"
One of the first to step quickly and silently out of the boat was Tim,and a minute later the boat-keepers saw the party disappear into thedarkness; and then Frank sat there listening to a faint sigh or two, therippling of the water beneath the boat, and trying to make out the shapeof the nearest prahu.
The Rajah of Dah Page 23
