Hesatdownandtookupthesculls。Wasubheldontothegunwaleastoalasthopeofafurtherconfidence。Hehadservedinthebrigfiveyears。Lingardrememberedthatverywell。Thisagedfigurehadbeenintimatelyassociatedwiththebrig’slifeandwithhisown，appearingsilentlyreadyforeveryincidentandemergencyinanunquestioningexpectationoforders；symbolicofblindtrustinhisstrength，ofanunlimitedobediencetohiswill。Wasitunlimited？

"Weshallrequirecourageandfidelity，"addedLingard，inatentativetone。

"Therearethosewhoknowme，"snappedtheoldman，readily，asifthewordshadbeenwaitingforalongtime。"Observe，Tuan。I

havefilledwithfreshwaterthelittlebreakerinthebows。"

"Iknowyou，too，"saidLingard。

"Andthewind——andthesea，"ejaculatedtheserang，jerkily。

"Thesealsoarefaithfultothestrong。ByAllah！Iwhoamapilgrimandhavelistenedtowordsofwisdominmanyplaces，I

tellyou，Tuan，thereisstrengthintheknowledgeofwhatishiddeninthingswithoutlife，aswellasinthelivingmen。

WillTuanbegonelong？"

"Icomebackinashorttime——togetherwiththerestofthewhitesfromoverthere。Thisisthebeginningofmanystratagems。

Wasub！Daman，thesonofadog，hassuddenlymadeprisonerstwoofmyownpeople。Myfaceismadeblack。"

"Tse！Tse！Whatferocityisthat！Oneshouldnotoffershametoafriendortoafriend’sbrotherlestrevengecomesweepinglikeaflood。YetcananIllanunchiefbeotherthantyrannical？Myoldeyeshaveseenmuchbuttheyneversawatigerchangeitsstripes。Ya—wa！Thetigercannot。ThisisthewisdomofusignorantMalaymen。ThewisdomofwhiteTuansisgreat。Theythinkthatbythepowerofmanyspeechesthetigermay——"Hebrokeoffandinacrisp，busytonesaid："TherudderdwellssafelyundertheaftermostseatshouldTuanbepleasedtosailtheboat。Thisbreezewillnotdieawaybeforesunrise。"Againhisvoicechangedasiftwodifferentsoulshadbeenflittinginandoutofhisbody。"No，no，killthetigerandthenthestripesmaybecountedwithoutfear——onebyone，thus。"

Hepointedafrailbrownfingerand，abruptly，madeamirthlessdrysoundasifarattlehadbeensprunginhisthroat。

"Thewretchesaremany，"saidLingard。

"Nay，Tuan。Theyfollowtheirgreatmenevenasweinthebrigfollowyou。Thatisright。"

Lingardreflectedforamoment。

"Mymenwillfollowmethen，"hesaid。

"Theyarepoorcalasheswithoutsense，"commentedWasubwithpityingsuperiority。"Somewithnomorecomprehensionthanmenofthebushfreshlycaught。ThereisSali，thefoolishsonofmysisterandbyyourgreatfavourappointedtomindthetillerofthisship。Hisstupidityisextreme，buthiseyesaregood——nearlyasgoodasminethatbyprayingandmuchexercisecanseefarintothenight。"

Lingardlaughedlowandthenlookedearnestlyattheserang。

Abovetheirheadsamanshookaflareoverthesideandathinshowerofsparksfloateddownwardandexpiredbeforetouchingthewater。

"Soyoucanseeinthenight，Oserang！Well，then，lookandspeak。Speak！Fight——ornofight？Weaponsorwords？Whichfolly？

Well，whatdoyousee？"

"Adarkness，adarkness，"whisperedWasubatlastinafrightenedtone。"Therearenights——"Heshookhisheadandmuttered。"Look。

Thetidehasturned。Ya，Tuan。Thetidehasturned。"

Lingardlookeddownwardwherethewatercouldbeseen，glidingpasttheship’sside，movingsmoothly，streakedwithlinesoffroth，acrosstheilluminedcirclethrownroundthebrigbythelightsonherpoop。Airbubblessparkled，linesofdarkness，ripplesofglitterappeared，glided，wentasternwithoutasplash，withoutatrickle，withoutaplaint，withoutabreak。Theuncheckedgentlenessoftheflowcapturedtheeyebyasubtlespell，fastenedinsidiouslyuponthemindadisturbingsenseoftheirretrievable。Theebbingoftheseaathwartthelonelysheenofflamesresembledtheeternalebb—tideoftime；andwhenatlastLingardlookedup，theknowledgeofthatnoiselesspassageofthewatersproducedonhismindabewilderingeffect。Foramomentthespeckoflightlostinvastobscuritythebrig，theboat，thehiddencoast，theShallows，theverywallsandroofofdarkness——theseenandtheunseenalikeseemedtobeglidingsmoothlyonwardthroughtheenormousgloomofspace。Then，withagreatmentaleffort，hebroughteverythingtoasuddenstandstill；andonlythefrothandbubbleswentonstreamingpastceaselessly，uncheckedbythepowerofhiswill。

"Thetidehasturned——yousay，serang？Hasit——？Well，perhapsithas，perhapsithas，"hefinished，mutteringtohimself。

"Trulyithas。CannotTuanseeitrununderhisowneyes？"saidWasubwithanalarmedearnestness。"Look。Nowitisinmymindthatapraucomingfromamongstthesouthernislands，ifsteeredcunninglyinthefreesetofthecurrent，wouldapproachthebowsofthis，ourbrig，driftingsilentlyasashapewithoutasubstance。"

"Andboardsuddenly——isthatit？"saidLingard。

"DamaniscraftyandtheIllanunsareverybloodthirsty。Nightisnothingtothem。Theyarecertainlyvalorous。Aretheynotborninthemidstoffightingandaretheynotinspiredbytheeviloftheirheartsevenbeforetheycanspeak？Andtheirchiefswouldbeleadingthemwhileyou，Tuan，aregoingfromusevennow——"

"Youdon’twantmetogo？"askedLingard。

ForatimeWasublistenedattentivelytotheprofoundsilence。

"Canwefightwithoutaleader？"hebeganagain。"Itisthebeliefinvictorythatgivescourage。Andwhatwouldpoorcalashesdo，sonsofpeasantsandfishermen，freshlycaught——withoutknowledge？Theybelieveinyourstrength——andinyourpower——orelse——Willthosewhitesthatcamesosuddenlyavengeyou？Theyareherelikefishwithinthestakes。Ya—wa！Whowillbringthenewsandwhowillcometofindthetruthandperchancetocarryoffyourbody？Yougoalone，Tuan！"

"Theremustbenofighting。Itwouldbeacalamity，"insistedLingard。"Thereisbloodthatmustnotbespilt。"

"Hear，Tuan！"exclaimedWasubwithheat。"Thewatersarerunningoutnow。"Hepunctuatedhisspeechbyslightjerksatthedinghy。

"Thewatersgoandattheappointedtimetheyshallreturn。Andifbetweentheirgoingandcomingthebloodofallthemenintheworldwerepouredintoit，theseawouldnotrisehigheratthefullbythebreadthofmyfingernail。"

"Buttheworldwouldnotbethesame。Youdonotseethat，serang。Givetheboatagoodshove。"

"Directly，"saidtheoldMalayandhisfacebecameimpassive。

"Tuanknowswhenitisbesttogo，anddeathsometimesretreatsbeforeafirmtreadlikeastartledsnake。Tuanshouldtakeafollowerwithhim，notasillyyouth，butonewhohaslived——whohasasteadyheart——whowouldwalkclosebehindwatchfully——andquietly。Yes。Quietlyandwithquickeyes——likemine——perhapswithaweapon——Iknowhowtostrike。"

Lingardlookedatthewrinkledvisageverynearhisownandintothepeeringoldeyes。Theyshonestrangely。Atenseeagernesswasexpressedinthesquattingfigureleaningouttowardhim。Ontheotherside，withinreachofhisarm，thenightstoodlikeawall—discouraging——opaque——impenetrable。Nohelpwouldavail。Thedarknesshehadtocombatwastooimpalpabletobecleftbyablow——toodensetobepiercedbytheeye；yetasifbysomeenchantmentinthewordsthatmadethisvainofferoffidelity，itbecamelessoverpoweringtohissight，lesscrushingtohisthought。Hehadamomentofpridewhichsoothedhisheartforthespaceoftwobeats。Hisunreasonableandmisjudgedheart，shrinkingbeforethemenaceoffailure，expandedfreelywithasenseofgenerousgratitude。Inthethreateningdimnessofhisemotionsthisman’soffermadeapointofclearness，theglimmerofatorchheldaloftinthenight。Itwaspriceless，nodoubt，butineffectual；toosmall，toofar，toosolitary。Itdidnotdispelthemysteriousobscuritythathaddescendeduponhisfortunessothathiseyescouldnolongerseetheworkofhishands。Thesadnessofdefeatpervadedtheworld。

"Andwhatcouldyoudo，OWasub？"hesaid。

"Icouldalwayscallout——’Takecare，Tuan。’"

"Andthenforthesecharm—wordsofmine。Hey？Turndangeraside？

What？Butperchanceyouwoulddieallthesame。Treacheryisastrongmagic，too——asyousaid。"

"Yes，indeed！Theordermightcometoyourservant。ButI——Wasub—

—thesonofafreeman，afollowerofRajahs，afugitive，aslave，apilgrim——diverforpearls，serangofwhitemen’sships，Ihavehadtoomanymasters。Toomany。Youarethelast。"Afterasilencehesaidinanalmostindifferentvoice："Ifyougo，Tuan，letusgotogether。"

ForatimeLingardmadenosound。

"Nouse，"hesaidatlast。"Nouse，serang。Onelifeisenoughtopayforaman’sfolly——andyouhaveahousehold。"

"Ihavetwo——Tuan；butitisalongtimesinceIsatontheladderofahousetotalkateasewithneighbours。Yes。Twohouseholds；onein——"Lingardsmiledfaintly。"Tuan，letmefollowyou。"

"No。Youhavesaidit，serang——Iamalone。Thatistrue，andaloneIshallgoonthisverynight。ButfirstImustbringallthewhitepeoplehere。Push。"

"Ready，Tuan？Lookout！"

Wasub’sbodyswungovertheseawithextendedarms。Lingardcaughtupthesculls，andasthedinghydartedawayfromthebrig’ssidehehadacompleteviewofthelightedpoop——Shawleaningmassivelyoverthetaffrailinsulkydejection，theflarebearerserectandrigid，theheadsalongtherail，theeyesstaringafterhimabovethebulwarks。Thefore—endofthebrigwaswrappedinaluridandsombremistiness；thesullenminglingofdarknessandoflight；hermastspointingstraightupcouldbetrackedbytorngleamsandvanishedaboveasifthetruckshadbeentallenoughtopiercetheheavymassofvapoursmotionlessoverhead。Shewasbeautifullyprecious。Hislovingeyessawherfloatingatrestinawaveringhalo，betweenaninvisibleskyandaninvisiblesea，likeamiraculouscraftsuspendedintheair。

Heturnedhisheadawayasifthesighthadbeentoomuchforhimatthemomentofseparation，and，assoonashislittleboathadpassedbeyondthelimitofthelightthrownuponthewater，heperceivedverylowintheblackvoidofthewestthesternlanternoftheyachtshiningfeeblylikeastarabouttoset，unattainable，infinitelyremote——belongingtoanotheruniverse。

PARTIV。THEGIFTOFTHESHALLOWS

I

LingardbroughtMrs。Traversawayfromtheyacht，goingalonewithherinthelittleboat。Duringthebustleoftheembarkment，andtillthelastofthecrewhadlefttheschooner，hehadremainedtoweringandsilentbyherside。Itwasonlywhenthemurmuringanduneasyvoicesofthesailorsgoingawayintheboatshadbeencompletelylostinthedistancethathisvoicewasheard，graveinthesilence，pronouncingthewords——"Followme。"

Shefollowedhim；theirfootstepsranghollowandloudontheemptydeck。Atthebottomofthestepsheturnedroundandsaidverylow：

"Takecare。"

Hegotintotheboatandheldon。Itseemedtohimthatshewasintimidatedbythedarkness。Shefeltherarmgrippedfirmly——"I’vegotyou，"hesaid。Shesteppedin，headlong，trustingherselfblindlytohisgrip，andsankonthesternseatcatchingherbreathalittle。Sheheardaslightsplash，andtheindistinctsideofthedesertedyachtmeltedsuddenlyintothebodyofthenight。

Rowing，hefacedher，ahoodedandcloakedshape，andaboveherheadhehadbeforehiseyesthegleamofthesternlanternexpiringslowlyontheabandonedvessel。Whenitwentoutwithoutawarningflickerhecouldseenothingofthestrandedyacht’soutline。Shehadvanishedutterlylikeadream；andtheoccurrencesofthelasttwenty—fourhoursseemedalsotobeapartofavanisheddream。Thehoodedandcloakedfigurewaspartofit，too。Itspokenot；itmovednot；itwouldvanishpresently。LingardtriedtorememberMrs。Travers’features，evenasshesatwithintwofeetofhimintheboat。Heseemedtohavetakenfromthatvanishedschoonernotawomanbutamemory——thetormentingrecollectionofahumanbeinghewouldseenomore。

AteverystrokeoftheshortscullsMrs。Traversfelttheboatleapforwardwithher。Lingard，tokeephisdirection，hadtolookoverhisshoulderfrequently——"Youwillbesafeinthebrig，"hesaid。Shewassilent。Adream！Adream！Helaybackvigorously；thewaterslappedloudlyagainstthebluntbows。Theruddyglowthrownafarbytheflareswasreflecteddeepwithinthehood。Thedreamhadapalevisage，thememoryhadlivingeyes。

"Ihadtocomeforyoumyself，"hesaid。

"Iexpecteditofyou。"Thesewerethefirstwordshehadheardhersaysincetheyhadmetforthethirdtime。

"AndIswore——beforeyou，too——thatIwouldneverputmyfootonboardyourcraft。"

"Itwasgoodofyouto——"shebegan。

"Iforgotsomehow，"hesaid，simply。

"Iexpecteditofyou，"sherepeated。Hegavethreequickstrokesbeforeheaskedverygently：

"Whatmoredoyouexpect？"

"Everything，"shesaid。Hewasroundingthenthesternofthebrigandhadtolookaway。Thenheturnedtoher。

"Andyoutrustmeto——"heexclaimed。

"Iwouldliketotrustyou，"sheinterrupted，"because——"

AbovethemastartledvoicecriedinMalay，"Captaincoming。"Thestrangesoundsilencedher。Lingardlaidinhisscullsandshesawherselfglidingunderthehighsideofthebrig。Adark，staringfaceappearedverynearhereyes，blackfingerscaughtthegunwaleoftheboat。Shestoodupswaying。"Takecare，"saidLingardagain，butthistime，inthelight，didnotoffertohelpher。Shewentupaloneandhefollowedherovertherail。

Thequarter—deckwasthrongedbymenoftworaces。LingardandMrs。Traverscrosseditrapidlybetweenthegroupsthatmovedoutofthewayontheirpassage。Lingardthrewopenthecabindoorforher，butremainedondecktoinquireabouthisboats。Theyhadreturnedwhilehewasonboardtheyacht，andthetwomeninchargeofthemcameafttomaketheirreports。Theboatsentnorthhadseennothing。TheboatwhichhadbeendirectedtoexplorethebanksandisletstothesouthhadactuallybeeninsightofDaman’spraus。Themaninchargereportedthatseveralfireswereburningontheshore，thecrewsofthetwoprausbeingencampedonasandbank。Cookingwasgoingon。Theyhadbeennearenoughtohearthevoices。Therewasamankeepingwatchontheridge；theyknewthisbecausetheyheardhimshoutingtothepeoplebelow，bythefires。Lingardwantedtoknowhowtheyhadmanagedtoremainunseen。"Thenightwasourhidingplace，"

answeredthemaninhisdeepgrowlingvoice。HeknewnothingofanywhitemenbeinginDaman’scamp。Whyshouldtherebe？RajahHassimandtheLady，hissister，appearedunexpectedlynearhisboatintheircanoe。RajahHassimhadorderedhimtheninwhisperstogobacktothebrigatonce，andtellTuanwhathehadobserved。RajahHassimsaidalsothathewouldreturntothebrigwithmorenewsverysoon。HeobeyedbecausetheRajahwastohimapersonofauthority，"havingtheperfectknowledgeofTuan’smindasweallknow。"——"Enough，"criedLingard，suddenly。

Themanlookedupheavilyforamoment，andretreatedforwardwithoutanotherword。Lingardfollowedhimwithirritatedeyes。A

newpowerhadcomeintotheworld，hadpossesseditselfofhumanspeech，hadimpartedtoitasinisterironyofallusion。Tobetoldthatsomeonehad"aperfectknowledgeofhismind"startledhimandmadehimwince。Itmadehimawarethatnowhedidnotknowhismindhimself——thatitseemedimpossibleforhimevertoregainthatknowledge。Andthenewpowernotonlyhadcastitsspelluponthewordshehadtohear，butalsouponthefactsthatassailedhim，uponthepeoplehesaw，uponthethoughtshehadtoguide，uponthefeelingshehadtobear。Theyremainedwhattheyhadeverbeen——thevisiblesurfaceoflifeopeninthesuntotheconqueringtreadofanunfetteredwill。Yesterdaytheycouldhavebeendiscernedclearly，masteredanddespised；butnowanotherpowerhadcomeintotheworld，andhadcastoverthemallthewaveringgloomofadarkandinscrutablepurpose。

II

RecoveringhimselfwithaslightstartLingardgavetheordertoextinguishallthelightsinthebrig。Nowthetransferofthecrewfromtheyachthadbeeneffectedtherewaseveryadvantageinthedarkness。Hegavetheorderfrominstinct，itbeingtherightthingtodointhecircumstances。Histhoughtswereinthecabinofhisbrig，wheretherewasawomanwaiting。Heputhishandoverhiseyes，collectinghimselfasifbeforeagreatmentaleffort。Hecouldhearabouthimtheexcitedmurmursofthewhitemenwhominthemorninghehadsoardentlydesiredtohavesafeinhiskeeping。Hehadthemtherenow；butaccident，ill—luck，acursedfolly，hadtrickedhimoutofthesuccessofhisplan。HewouldhavetogoinandtalktoMrs。Travers。Theideadismayedhim。Ofnecessityhewasnotoneofthosemenwhohavethemasteryofexpression。Toliberatehissoulwasforhimagiganticundertaking，amatterofdesperateeffort，ofdoubtfulsuccess。"Imusthaveitoutwithher，"hemurmuredtohimselfasthoughattheprospectofastruggle。Hewasuncertainofhimself，ofher；hewasuncertainofeverythingandeverybody；

buthewasverycertainhewantedtolookather。

Atthemomentheturnedtothedoorofthecabinbothflareswentouttogetherandtheblackvaultofthenightupheldabovethebrigbythefierceflamesfellbehindhimandburiedthedeckinsuddendarkness。Thebuzzofstrangevoicesinstantlyhummedlouderwithastartlednote。"Hallo！"——"Can’tseeamortalthing"——"Well，whatnext？"——insistedavoice——"Iwanttoknowwhatnext？"

Lingardcheckedhimselfreadytoopenthedoorandwaitedabsurdlyfortheanswerasthoughinthehopeofsomesuggestion。

"What’supwithyou？Thinkyourselflucky，"saidsomebody。——"It’sallverywell——forto—night，"beganthevoice。——"Whatareyoufashingyourselffor？"remonstratedtheother，reasonably，"we’llgethomerightenough。"——"Iamnotsosure；thesecondmatehesays——""Nevermindwhathesays；that’eremanwhohasgotthisbrigwillseeusthrough。Theowner’swifewilltalktohim——shewill。Moneycandoalot。"Thetwovoicescamenearer，andspokemoredistinctly，closebehindLingard。"Supposethembloomingsavagessetfiretotheyacht。What’stopreventthem？"——"Andsupposetheydo。This’erebrig’sgoodenoughtogetawayin。

Ain’tshe？Gunsandall。We’llgethomeyetallright。Whatdoyousay，John？"

"Isaynothingandcareless，"saidathirdvoice，peacefulandfaint。

"D’youmeantosay，John，youwouldgotothebottomassoonasyouwouldgohome？Comenow！"——"Tothebottom，"repeatedthewanvoice，composedly。"Aye！That’swhereweallaregoingto，inonewayoranother。Thewaydon’tmatter。"

"Ough！Youwouldgivethebluestothefunnymanofabloomingcircus。WhatwouldmymissussayifIwasn’ttoturnupneveratall？"——"Shewouldgetanotherman；there’salwaysplentyoffoolsabout。"Aquietandmirthlesschucklewasheardinthepauseofshockedsilence。Lingard，withhishandonthedoor，remainedstill。Furtheroffagrowlburstout："Idohatetobechuckedinthedarkaboardastrangeship。Iwonderwheretheykeeptheirfreshwater。Can’tgetanysenseoutofthemsillyniggers。Wedon’tseemtobemoreaccountherethanalotofcattle。Likelyasnotwe’llhavetoberthonthisbloomingquarter—deckforGodknowshowlong。"ThenagainverynearLingardthefirstvoicesaid，deadeneddiscreetly——"There’ssomethingcuriousaboutthisherebrigturningupsudden—like，ain’tthere？Andthatskipperofher——now？Whatkindofamanishe——anyhow？"

"Oh，he’soneofthemskippersgoingaboutloose。Thebrig’shisown，Iamthinking。Hejustgoesaboutinherlookingforwhathemaypickuphonestordishonest。Mybrother—in—lawhasservedtwocommissionsintheseseas，andwastellingmeawfulyarnsaboutwhat’sgoingoninthemGod—forsakenparts。Likelyhelied，though。Themman—of—war’smenareaholyterrorforyarns。Blessyou，whatdoIcarewhothisskipperis？Lethimdohisbestanddon’ttroubleyourhead。Youwon’tseehimagaininyourlifeoncewegetclear。"

"Andcanhedoanythingfortheowner？"askedthefirstvoiceagain。——"Canhe！Wecandonothing——that’sonethingcertain。Theownermaybelyingclubbedtodeaththisveryminuteforallweknow。Byallaccountsthesesavageshereareacroolmurderinglot。Mindyou，Iamsorryforhimasmuchasanybody。"——"Aye，aye，"mutteredtheother，approvingly。——"Hemaynothavebeenready，poorman，"beganagainthereasonablevoice。Lingardheardadeepsigh。——"Ifthere’sanythingascanbedoneforhim，theowner’swifeshe’sgottofixitupwiththis’ereskipper。UnderProvidencehemayserveherturn。"

Lingardflungopenthecabindoor，entered，and，withaslam，shutthedarknessout。

"Iam，underProvidence，toserveyourturn，"hesaidafterstandingverystillforawhile，withhiseyesuponMrs。Travers。

Thebrig’sswing—lamplightedthecabinwithanextraordinarybrilliance。Mrs。Travershadthrownbackherhood。Theradiantbrightnessofthelittleplaceenfoldedhersoclose，clungtoherwithsuchforcethatitmighthavebeenpartofherveryessence。Therewerenoshadowsonherface；itwasfiercelylighted，hermeticallyclosed，ofimpenetrablefairness。

Lingardlookedinunconsciousecstasyatthisvision，soamazingthatitseemedtohavestrayedintohisexistencefrombeyondthelimitsoftheconceivable。Itwasimpossibletoguessherthoughts，toknowherfeelings，tounderstandhergrieforherjoy。Butsheknewallthatwasatthebottomofhisheart。Hehadtoldherhimself，impelledbyasuddenthought，goingtoherindarkness，indesperation，inabsurdhope，inincredibletrust。Hehadtoldherwhathehadtoldnooneonearth，exceptperhaps，attimes，himself，butwithoutwords——lessclearly。Hehadtoldherandshehadlistenedinsilence。Shehadlistenedleaningovertherailtillatlastherbreathwasonhisforehead。Herememberedthisandhadamomentofsoaringprideandofunutterabledismay。Hespoke，withaneffort。

"You’veheardwhatIsaidjustnow？HereIam。"

"Doyouexpectmetosaysomething？"sheasked。"Isitnecessary？

Isitpossible？"

"No，"heanswered。"Itissaidalready。Iknowwhatyouexpectfromme。Everything。"

"Everything，"sherepeated，paused，andaddedmuchlower，"Itistheveryleast。"Heseemedtolosehimselfinthought。

"Itisextraordinary，"hereflectedhalfaloud，"howIdislikethatman。"Sheleanedforwardalittle。

"Rememberthosetwomenareinnocent，"shebegan。

"SoamI——innocent。Soiseverybodyintheworld。Haveyouevermetamanorawomanthatwasnot？They’vegottotaketheirchancesallthesame。"

"Iexpectyoutobegenerous，"shesaid。

"Toyou？"

"Well——tome。Yes——ifyouliketomealone。"

"Toyoualone！Andyouknoweverything！"Hisvoicedropped。"Youwantyourhappiness。"

Shemadeanimpatientmovementandhesawherclenchthehandthatwaslyingonthetable。

"Iwantmyhusbandback，"shesaid，sharply。

"Yes。Yes。It’swhatIwassaying。Samething，"hemutteredwithstrangeplacidity。Shelookedathimsearchingly。Hehadalargesimplicitythatfilledone’svision。Shefoundherselfslowlyinvadedbythismasterfulfigure。Hewasnotmediocre。Whateverhemighthavebeenhewasnotmediocre。Theglamourofalawlesslifestretchedoverhimliketheskyovertheseadownonallsidestoanunbrokenhorizon。Within，hemovedverylonely，dangerousandromantic。Therewasinhimcrime，sacrifice，tenderness，devotion，andthemadnessofafixedidea。Shethoughtwithwonderthatofallthemenintheworldhewasindeedtheonesheknewthebestandyetshecouldnotforeseethespeechortheactofthenextminute。Shesaiddistinctly：

"You’vegivenmeyourconfidence。NowIwantyoutogivemethelifeofthesetwomen。Thelifeoftwomenwhomyoudonotknow，whomto—morrowyouwillforget。Itcanbedone。Itmustbedone。

Youcannotrefusethemtome。"Shewaited。

"Whycan’tIrefuse？"hewhispered，gloomily，withoutlookingup。

"Youask！"sheexclaimed。Hemadenosign。Heseemedatalossforwords。

"Youask……Ah！"shecried。"Don’tyouseethatIhavenokingdomstoconquer？"

III

AslightchangeofexpressionwhichpassedawayalmostdirectlyshowedthatLingardheardthepassionatecrywrungfromherbythedistressofhermind。Hemadenosign。Sheperceivedclearlytheextremedifficultyofherposition。Thesituationwasdangerous；notsomuchthefactsofitasthefeelingofit。Attimesitappearednomoreactualthanatradition；andshethoughtofherselfasofsomewomaninaballad，whohastobegforthelivesofinnocentcaptives。TosavethelivesofMr。

TraversandMr。d’Alcacerwasmorethanaduty。Itwasanecessity，itwasanimperativeneed，itwasanirresistiblemission。Yetshehadtoreflectuponthehorrorsofacruelandobscuredeathbeforeshecouldfeelforthemthepitytheydeserved。ItwaswhenshelookedatLingardthatherheartwaswrungbyanextremityofcompassion。Theotherswerepitiful，buthe，thevictimofhisownextravagantimpulses，appearedtragic，fascinating，andculpable。Lingardliftedhishead。WhisperswereheardatthedoorandHassimfollowedbyImmadaenteredthecabin。

Mrs。TraverslookedatLingard，becauseofallthefacesinthecabinhiswastheonlyonethatwasintelligibletoher。Hassimbegantospeakatonce，andwhenheceasedImmada’sdeepsighwasheardinthesuddensilence。ThenLingardlookedatMrs。Traversandsaid：

"Thegentlemenarealive。RajahHassimherehasseenthemlessthantwohoursago，andsohasthegirl。Theyarealiveandunharmed，sofar。Andnow……"

Hepaused。Mrs。Travers，leaningonherelbow，shadedhereyesundertheglintofsuspendedthunderbolts。

"Youmusthateus，"shemurmured。

"Hateyou，"herepeatedwith，asshefancied，atingeofdisdaininhistone。"No。Ihatemyself。"

"Whyyourself？"sheasked，verylow。

"Fornotknowingmymind，"heanswered。"Fornotknowingmymind。

Fornotknowingwhatitisthat’sgotholdofmesince——sincethismorning。Iwasangrythen……Nothingbutveryangry……"

"Andnow？"shemurmured。

"Iam……unhappy，"hesaid。AfteramomentofsilencewhichgavetoMrs。Traversthetimetowonderhowitwasthatthismanhadsucceededinpenetratingintotheverydepthsofhercompassion，hehitthetablesuchablowthatalltheheavymusketsseemedtojumpalittle。

Mrs。TraversheardHassimpronounceafewwordsearnestly，andamoanofdistressfromImmada。

"Ibelievedinyoubeforeyou……beforeyougavemeyourconfidence，"shebegan。"Youcouldseethat。Couldyounot？"

Helookedatherfixedly。"Youarenotthefirstthatbelievedinme，"hesaid。

Hassim，loungingwithhisbackagainstthecloseddoor，kepthiseyeonhimwatchfullyandImmada’sdarkandsorrowfuleyesrestedonthefaceofthewhitewoman。Mrs。Traversfeltasthoughshewereengagedinacontestwiththem；inastruggleforthepossessionofthatman’sstrengthandofthatman’sdevotion。

WhenshelookedupatLingardshesawonhisface——whichshouldhavebeenimpassiveorexalted，thefaceofasternleaderorthefaceofapitilessdreamer——anexpressionofutterforgetfulness。

Heseemedtobetastingthedelightofsomeprofoundandamazingsensation。Andsuddenlyinthemidstofherappealtohisgenerosity，inthemiddleofaphrase，Mrs。Traversfaltered，becomingawarethatshewastheobjectofhiscontemplation。

"Donot！Donotlookatthatwoman！"criedImmada。"O！

Master——lookaway……"Hassimthrewonearmroundthegirl’sneck。Hervoicesank。"O！Master——lookatus。"Hassim，drawinghertohimself，coveredherlipswithhishand。Shestruggledalittlelikeasnaredbirdandsubmitted，hidingherfaceonhisshoulder，veryquiet，sobbingwithoutnoise。

"Whatdotheysaytoyou？"askedMrs。Traverswithafaintandpainedsmile。"Whatcantheysay？Itisintolerabletothinkthattheirwordswhichhavenomeaningformemaygostraighttoyourheart……"

"Lookaway，"whisperedLingardwithoutmakingtheslightestmovement。

Mrs。Traverssighed。