Suddenly the thought sprang into my mind that this was like something in a theatre. We were on the stage, in a play of Ancient Egypt, and a mob of supers was yelling for our lives in the wings. They would pour out upon the stage and attack us. Only the hero and heroine would be saved. All the villains and other unnecessary people would be polished off.
Everybody had stopped talking. Involuntarily groups drew together. We looked over our smoking candles, past the standing statues and the fallen statues, away toward the columns of the temple entrance.
Mr. and Mrs. Bronson, and the girl in Biddy"s veiled hood and cloak, walked across the court and joined our party of three. Neill Sheridan was at a distance. His prophetic soul told him nothing. "I hope that fellow Rechid Bey hasn"t worked up any trouble against us," the American Consul from Asiut said in a low, somewhat worried tone.
Instantly I was certain that what he hoped had not happened, was indeed the thing that had happened. I seemed to see Rechid stirring up a crowd of his fellow Mussulmans, telling them that dogs of Christians had robbed him of his foreign wife, who was on the point of accepting Islam. Nothing easier than for Rechid to find us. All Luxor knew we were in the Temple of Mut. These men of Luxor and other Nile towns of Upper Egypt, had not yet settled down after the outburst against Christian insults which had alarmed the authorities in Cairo. In three days Anthony Fenton had discovered the dregs at the bottom of the teapot and had doubtless done something toward calming the tempest in it, but the troubled water had not time to cool. It could easily be brought to the boil again; and the despoiling of a harem by Europeans --the harem of an important man--would be oil thrown onto the dying fire under the tempestuous teapot.
The furious voices grew louder. From the wave of sound words spattered out and up like spray. Perhaps in all that astonished crowd gathered in the Temple of Mut, Bronson and I were the only ones who knew enough Arabic to catch their meaning. His question was answered. And this was not a stage. Those shouting men were not supers in the wings. They were in earnest. Foolish and dreamlike and utterly unreal as it seemed, their hearts were hot with savage anger against men and women of an alien race: and though what they might do to us would be visited on their own heads to-morrow, they were not thinking of to-morrow now. As for us--it was just possible that owing to this silly dream we were having about a mob of common, uneducated Arabs, for some of us there might not be any to-morrow.
"Is there a back door where we can dash out and give them the slip?"
asked Bronson.
I was thinking hard. Mine was the responsibility for my charges, these rich, comfortable tourists from London and New York, Birmingham and Manchester, Chicago and St Louis. None of them knew yet that they were in danger. They were thinking about their dinner, and their pleasant, lighted cabins on board the _Enchantress Isis_, waiting for them not far away. They realized that something was the matter out there, that a lot of Arabs were making a row; but it interested and amused them impersonally. If somebody had robbed or murdered somebody else, morally it was a pity, of course: but it added to the picturesqueness of the scene, and would be nice to tell about at home. I felt myself overflowing with a sudden, new tenderness for the Set, so often troublesome. This that was going to happen--unless we could stop it --was in truth the affair of Monny and Brigit, Mabella Hanem and the Bronsons, Anthony Fenton and me; but all would be involved, the innocent with the guilty, unless very quickly the duffer of the company could think of some way out.
"No," I heard myself say with decision, "we mustn"t leave the temple.
They"re superst.i.tious about it. Few, if any, will venture in. What they want is to lure us into the open. And there must be no panic. Certainly my friend, unless he"s been hurt, is working for us--somewhere. It"s only a question of minutes. He borrowed my Browning to-day. I wish--" I glanced toward Brigit and Monny. They stood at a little distance, with Mrs. Bronson and Mabel, but the faces of both were turned toward us. I saw that they guessed the meaning of the uproar outside. Biddy"s great soft eyes spoke to mine, spoke, and told me all the truth about myself.
How I loved her, Biddy O"Brien, and no one else on earth! How I would die for her, and let all the rest die, if need be, yes, even Monny Gilder, to whom I had been idiot enough to write that letter! If I could save Biddy, what did anything beside matter? But--yes, it did matter. I must save them all. And the light that had lit up my dim soul gave me inspiration. Because I loved Biddy, I knew what to do.
"I"ve got a little surprise for every one!" I yelled, to be heard over the noise outside, where Rechid Bey"s mob was now probably trying to make our donkey-boys and arabeah-men join in the fight or the siege.
"Mr. Neill Sheridan will kindly lead the whole party to the sanctuary, which his knowledge of architecture will enable him to find, on the axis of the temple. Down that pa.s.sage, please! In fifteen minutes the surprise will be ready, and you will receive the signal to return, from Mr. Bronson, American Consul at Asiut--no time for introductions now."
Sheridan, amazed, but perhaps not displeased, emerged from the dark corner where, until the row began, he had been examining a half-erased wall-carving. "Come along, then, everybody!" he shouted good-naturedly; and as the procession formed--discussing the "surprise" and the noise, now mysteriously linked together in the minds of my charges--I saw the veiled and hooded Mabel shyly try to pull Mrs. Bronson into place with her, as near as possible to Sheridan. She must have suspected that there was trouble brewing, and guessed the cause. Her timid, self-centred little soul instinctively sought shelter in the neighbourhood of a friend, who would perhaps have been more than a friend, if he could. So she followed him, he not knowing what eyes the gray veil hid: but Mrs. Bronson broke away from the small hand and hurried back to her husband.
"What am I to do?" she asked.
"Go with the others," he said, quietly. "Take care of the girl. Lord Ernest has some plan."
She went reluctantly; but Brigit and Monny and Mrs. East lingered at the tail of the procession, returning to us as the others vanished down the pa.s.sage that led toward the sanctuary. I motioned them away, but Monny ran forward, while Biddy kept Cleopatra from following. They talked together and argued, Biddy"s arm round the taller woman"s waist, as Monny came straight to me, and put into my hand Anthony Fenton"s pistol.
"I didn"t have to use it," she said. "It"s all loaded and ready. And I"m going to stay here with you and Mr. Bronson, to help. What are you planning to do?"
"Please run away," I said, "and take Biddy and your aunt. You must.
That"s the only help we want--"
"Not till you tell me what you mean to do."
"Oh, only to try a trick to frighten those Arab sheep out there. They funk this temple at night anyhow. And I"ve just remembered that I brought some Bengal fire to light the place up and amuse the crowd. I thought if a red blaze suddenly burst out it would give those fellows a scare--and the police are on the way--"
"But the Arabs will see that you"re only two!"
"They shan"t see us at all. We"ll hide behind those statues and pot at them if they do come in, which I doubt. Now, off with the three of you!" And I was getting my illumination ready.
To my surprise and relief, Monny obeyed without further argument. Dimly it pa.s.sed through my mind that she had been profiting by her lessons lately. I threw one glance over my shoulder, more, I"m afraid, to see whether my dear Brigit were on her way to safety than through anxiety for Miss Gilder. The three figures had already disappeared in the darkness, and Bronson and I gave ourselves to the work of lighting up.
An ocean-roar of voices surged round the temple entrance now; but the red light flamed like the fires of h.e.l.l, and I, peeping from behind a statue, revolver in hand, saw that the temple itself had not been invaded. The flare lit the foreground of the darkness outside, and the columns of the front court. I could see a moving throng of white and black clad figures, gesticulating, running to and fro, seeming to urge each other to some action, yet none coming forward. I sprinkled on more powder, and up blazed the Bengal fire again. Now somebody was taking the lead. A tall man was pushing through the crowd. Would they follow this brave one? My fingers closed round the Browning. He was between the columns at last, but the light was dying down. I threw on all I had of the powder, and stared through the red dazzle to make certain what was happening--since this might decide our fate. The tall man"s back was turned to us. He seemed to be motioning the crowd away instead of urging them on. How to make sure, in the blood-coloured glare, whether a man"s turban was white or green or crimson? But that gesture--that lift of the head! No mistaking that. The man was Antoun--Ahmed Antoun, the worshipful Hadji, haranguing the mob.
Hardly would they let him speak at first. Those on the outskirts tried to yell him down. I heard the word "traitor!" and before the light ebbed I thought I caught sight of Rechid"s pale face under the red tarboosh, Rechid"s broad shoulders in European coat, edging past jebbahs and galabeahs, toward the columns. Then, just as the light died, from behind us in the temple came a cry. Above the shouting of the Hadji, who was beginning to make himself heard by the crowd, it rang out shrill and clear--a woman"s voice: Monny Gilder"s. She called on the name of Antoun, and then was silent.
I lifted my candle-lantern--all that was left to illumine the darkness, and saw at the far end of the court shadowy figures struggling together. It seemed to me that there were not two, but four or five. I ran toward them, and Bronson ran, but some one bounded past us both--a tall man in a green turban. A shot was fired after him, and hit a statue. I heard subconsciously a miniature crash of chipped granite, but I don"t think Anthony heard, or had heard anything since that call for "Antoun!"
He had dashed ahead, though we had had the start and were running fast.
Rounding a group of statues, erect and fallen, I saw a candle-lantern on the floor, and knew that Monny--and perhaps Biddy--had not obediently followed the procession to the sanctuary, after all. They had waited to watch and listen, hiding behind the black statues of Sekhet, and men who had crept in by another way--doubtless by the small Ptolemaic gate opening on the lake--had taken them by surprise.
Anthony had got to the shadowy ma.s.s, which, moved like black, wind-blown clouds, vague and shapeless, before Bronson and I were near enough to distinguish one form from another. As for our eyes, his tall figure blended with the waving shadows; two revolver shots exploded with thunderous reverberations. We did not know if he, or another, had fired; but almost simultaneously with the second shot two black shapes separated themselves from the rest, fleeing into darkness. They took the way by which they must have come, the way leading toward the gate on the lake.
Three seconds later we were on the spot; and the only shadows left resolved themselves under my candle light into the forms of Brigit O"Neill, Monny Gilder, Anthony Fenton, and Mrs. East somewhat in the background.
Monny"s hat was off, and Biddy"s was apparently hanging by a hatpin.
Their hair was in disorder, a rope of Biddy"s falling over one shoulder, a shining braid of Monny"s hanging down her back. Monny seemed to be more or less in the arms of Antoun, but only vaguely and by accident. Dimly I gathered that she had stumbled, and he had saved her from falling. Biddy was fastening up the front of her gray chiffon blouse, which was open, and torn. Her hands trembled and I could see that her breast rose and fell convulsively; for, though the light was dim, I was looking at her, while I merely glanced at the others. Mrs.
East was crying. But Brigit and Monny had smiles for Bronson and me as we came blundering along, stumbling over unseen obstacles.
"Some one stole up behind with an electric torch, and tried to drag me away," said Monny, in a weak little voice, scarcely at all like her own. It sounded as if a ventriloquist were imitating her. "Some one called me Esme O"Brien--whispered right in my ear. And I screamed, and fought, and Antoun came. I think then the man pushed me down as he ran away. Anyhow I fell, and Antoun picked me up. Oh, Biddy, are you safe?
Why, your dress is torn!"
"Yes, but I"m safe," answered another small, weak voice. "I fought, too. I--I think they wanted to rob me. Thank goodness, I didn"t have it on."
"The bag, dearest?"
"Yes, darling, the bag. I thought I wouldn"t wear it to-day."
Out in the night the yells had subsided since the Hadji"s harangue, if not wholly because of it.
"The police have come," said Anthony. "It occurred to me that Rechid and some friends of his were cooking up a plan, and while I was getting into my clothes in the village it jumped into my head what it might be.
So on my way out to the temple I stopped and left a warning. We"re all right now. And I don"t think the Arab lot would have dared venture in anyhow. These chaps who sneaked in at the back and attacked the ladies were dressed like the rest, but I doubt they were Arabs."
He would have doubted still more, if he had known all that I knew. But the one secret I"d kept from him was Biddy"s secret. The words "Esme O"Brien" whispered to Monny, as yet meant nothing save bewilderment to Fenton.
"The fifteen minutes are up, and no signal yet for your famous surprise," called out Sir John Biddell"s complaining voice, from the end of a dark pa.s.sage. "Has anything gone wrong?"
"Oh, I was going to give you a Bengal fire illumination of the temple, for a climax," I explained, coming suavely forward to meet him with my candle. "But the beastly stuff--er--sort of went off by itself, and it"s all used up. I was--er--just going to call you."
"Well, not much harm done," said Sir John. "We"ve seen the sanctuary, such as it is. A little disappointing, perhaps, especially as Mr.
Sheridan found a friend with Mrs. Bronson, the Consul"s wife, and preferred talking with her to giving out information to us, from his stores of knowledge. But luckily not more than twenty minutes wasted.
By the way, what"s become of the row outside? Seems to have fizzled down while we were away, like your red fire."
"Yes, a great man of some sort was addressing the crowd. But the police came along and made it move on. There"s been a bit of native grumbling in these Nile towns lately--you may have read some paragraph about it in the Cairo papers? So the police are rather quick to break up meetings."
"Why should men meet near the Temple of Mut?" inquired Sir John. "_I_ shouldn"t think of doing it."
"Perhaps in the beginning they hoped to get something out of the Europeans," said I lightly. "But they"ve given that up, evidently."
"I hope they haven"t seduced our donkey-boys and arabeah drivers!"
exclaimed Sir John. "I"m hungry. And I"m in a hurry to get home."
"Not they. Donkey-boys and arabeah-men aren"t easily seduced when there"s a question of baksheesh. _They"re_ all right! I"m only sorry about the Bengal fire."
"Well, it was a good idea, anyhow," Sir John patronized me.
"_C"est vrai_," I heard murmur in his chosen language, the Hadji, who had saved the situation. "_C"etait une idee tres bien pour un_--duffer."