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CHAPTER II.

"WELL, Mrs. Delamere," said Mr. Leighton, as I entered his office one day, "are you still determined to go on with your work; or has your courage failed you now that you know the dangers of pearl-broking?"

"I have plenty of courage still," was my answer, "and it would take more than one alarm to make me give up my profession now that I have seriously adopted it. I have sold the black pearls for the price you wished they have gone over to the Continent to-day with a foreign dealer, to be set in a pendant for a royal marriage. I have the pink pearl yet to place, but I am reserving that for a special mission. Will you let me have some white ones suitable for making a necklace. I fancy I might do something with them."

Mr. Leighton went to his safe, and unlocked it.

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"I have not only the pearls here, but also the order for them--if they suit," he said.

He handed me a letter, of which at first I could make no sense, and watched me with an amused smile while I puzzled over it. Suddenly the solution of the puzzle came to me.

The letter was written backwards after the fashion of Hindustani and Persian epistles, and began with what I had at first taken for the signature.

It was couched in flowery and figurative language, difficult to understand, but I succeeded in making out that it was a request for some pearls, well matched and pure in colour, to be sent on approval for the writer to see before purchasing. He required them, it stated, for a Ranee of great wealth, who was willing to pay a high price for the desire of her fancy. It concluded by naming an hour when he would be ready to receive Mr. Leighton's emissary.

The address was printed very legibly after the name: 14, Saint Athelstane's Court. I lifted my head in surprise.

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"Why," I said, "that is close here, Mr. Leighton!"

"Just opposite," he answered. "I suppose that is how my Oriental friend came to think of me. It seems singular, though. These natives generally deal with each other. I don't altogether like it. Perhaps it would be better to let it slide."

He could not have said anything more certain to resolve my own doubts and indecision.

"Certainly not," I said. "I will take the pearls, and go to see Ali Mahomed Khan to-morrow."

Mr. Leighton would not give them to me at first.

"You must not be foolhardy, Mrs. Delamere," he said gravely. "I begin to feel a little worried about your adventurous spirit. If any serious harm comes to you, I shall never forgive myself. Give up this particular quest to please me."

But, partly from some impulse for which I could not account, and yet could not resist, and | | 25 partly from a sort of resentful pique that had taken possession of me since my narrow escape at the hotel, I was not to be shaken from my resolve.

I carried off the pearls to my flat, and, placing them in the safe which was let into the wall of the passage, slept the sleep of the just and the unconcerned.

I felt fully prepared the next morning for Ali Mahomed Khan, and I did not doubt that it was he, or some person belonging to him, who had made me the object of scrutiny on the day of any first visit to Mr. Leighton's office. I recalled the swarthy face that had looked down on me from the opposite house, and again the chance meeting at the entrance posts.

His interest in me was accounted for; he was, no doubt, contemplating dealings with Mr. Leighton. I drove to the corner of St. Athelstane's Court early in the afternoon, and sent the carriage away, in order to avoid attracting attention, then quietly made my way to No. 14, and knocked at the door. It | | 26 was opened immediately, and in the dim passage beyond I saw an ayah, who silently invited me to enter.

"Is Ali Mahomed Khan at home?" I said.

She nodded. "Waiting for you," she answered in English. As I stepped in, the door closed behind me, and I noticed, though it did not make any special impression on me at the time, that there was no visible lock or fastening--no more apparent mode of effecting exit from the inside than there had been of entrance outside.

The ayah passed in front of me to the stairs, and led me up four long flights, our footsteps echoing dismally through the silence of the house.

At the top of the first flight, a window, so encrusted with dirt that the panes were opaque, was slightly open, and through the space I could set a narrow vista of deserted back yard.

The rooms had evidently been used in former times as warehouses, and through the doorless apertures we passed on the way up I saw rows of empty shelves and cases.

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Everything spoke of disuse and oblivion, and I felt that I should breathe more freely if I were a few yards off in the open street again. Finally we stopped before a heavy dark curtain shrouding an archway, and my guide, drawing back the folds with one hand, directed me with the other to pass through an open door beyond.

It was a singular transition from the desolate uncarpeted staircase to a room covered with soft thick rugs, filled to repletion with every sort of Oriental furniture and bric-a-brac, the atmosphere heavy with mingled scents--of sandal-wood, kuskus, lacquer, and attar-of-roses.

For a moment, as I entered, it seemed to stifle me, and I felt a little dizzy.

There were two men in the room--one plainly dressed, small and lithe, with a keen, handsome face, who was writing at a table; the other, more elaborate in his attire, seated on some cushions, a tray with cups of coffee and dishes of sweetmeats at his side.

He looked steadfastly at me, and I recognised the strangely brilliant eyes whose glance, | | 28 encountered twice before, had left such a vivid imprint on my mind.

He rose quietly and came to meet me.

"Mrs. Delamere, I think?" he said politely.

I bowed.

"This is my friend, Abdullah," he continued, indicating the man at the writing-table, then in a tone of authority, "give Mrs. Delamere a chair."

The man wheeled a low armchair forward, and I sat down.

I remember thinking as I did so, that I should be glad when our interview was over, and that, in the event of any difference of opinion arising between us as to terms, I should close the transaction at once and take my departure.

"You wished to look at some pearls," I said. "Mr. Leighton handed your letter to me and I--"

"Pardon me," he made a courteous gesture of interruption. "You will first take a little coffee?"

He handed one of the cups to me.

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"Thank you, no," I answered; "I never take coffee."

"At least some of these," he said, lifting one of the little dishes.

"I would rather not, thank you," I answered again, and as he frowned a little, I added apologetically, "I am not fond of sweets."

The frown deepened, and he said slowly:

"We do not understand your Western ways. In our country, business is conducted with preliminary compliments, and to refuse a proffered hospitality is an affront. May I not persuade you to take one."

He was still holding the dish towards me, and I wavered. If I refused again, possibly he would take offence and decline to treat with me. It would be a pity to lose the chance of a sale that meant such a large profit to me, and that would greatly advance my prestige with Mr. Leighton.

The sweets looked very harmless; there were some small red and amber jujubes, dusted with sugar, that were probably made of Rahat Lakoum. I could at least take one of | | 30 them, and then my Oriental friend would, I suppose, proceed to business.

We were all silent as I took the sweet and ate it, and in the stillness I heard the door, which was behind me, gently closed from the outside, and the faint sound of retreating foot-falls on the stairs. A sudden perception of danger came to me with so violent a shock that I involuntarily swallowed the remainder of the sweetmeat, though at that very instant I had noticed an unusual taste which came from a little nut in the centre of it.

I glanced towards the two men; they were both looking down on the ground, their faces devoid of expression, politely waiting my leisure. For a moment I was reassured, then again doubt assailed me. I looked round the room; was there any window through which I could call for assistance if anything untowards occurred?

Both windows were blocked up half way with heavy inlaid cabinets, above which only the upper panes were visible.

My heart began to beat a little fast; I felt that I must summon all my courage, and | | 31 direct my attention to business with the hope of getting through it quickly and departing. All this flashed through my mind while I passed my handkerchief over my lips and cleared my throat to speak.

"If you will kindly tell me which stones you would like to see," were the words I essayed to utter, but with the first syllables my voice broke and died away.

I had no sense of pain, but a strange difficulty of articulation had suddenly taken possession of me: any throat felt cold and dead; my tongue lay lifeless in my mouth and refused to do its office. I realised, with an awful throb of terror, that my speech was paralysed, and for an instant the room swam round me, and I thought that I must faint.

But the very intensity of my alarm, and the uncertainty of what precise danger threatened me, steadied any nerves and kept me conscious.

Ali Mahomed raised his eyes, and said, in a quiet, measured way:

"Do not try to speak; it will not be possible to you for the next two hours. That sweet | | 32 contained a small quantity of the active principle of coca--for the present your throat and tongue are paralysed.

"You are a brave woman, or you would have lost your senses when you found that you had lost your voice. But you have no need to be alarmed--I do not seek your life, nor do I desire to rob you. My motives are quite different. Do you wish to learn them, or will you do exactly as I tell you without seeking to inquire the reason?"

He read the answer in my eyes.

"Very well. I am quite willing to tell you. But first, if you will drink some of this"--he lifted a liqueur glass from the tray--"it will give you confidence; it is only an ordinary restorative."

I shook my, head. I would trust him no further. It might be drugged, and I must keep my senses clear, or all chance of escape would be over.

"I am a native of Kabalpur. Here I am no one; I pursue my business unremarked. In my own country I have much influence and | | 33 renown, and when there is a difficult thing to be done men come to me. Abdullah there is in my power, and bound to me by many ties; therefore, he does as I bid him, and, with his assistance and that of Guzra Bai downstairs, I defy even your London police." All the while he was speaking I was striving to keep my attention concentrated on his words, and not to allow it to dwell on my own terrible sensations.

The feeling of powerlessness that had come to me with my loss of voice was intense--the shock had left me weak and unstrung, and I felt as if I must burst into tears; but my determination to keep calm, and avail myself of the first opportunity for release that might come, was so strong that it upheld me, and kept me outwardly quiet.

"I have been watching you closely for some time past, Mrs. Delamere," the smooth voice went on, "and I know your history well. You have few relations; none near enough to busy themselves in inquiry after you at once if you should disappear suddenly. By the time | | 34 they realise that you are not to be found you will be safe in Kabalpur, or well on your way there. The servants at your flat would, of course, give the alarm if you did not return to-night, but you will explain your absence satisfactorily in a note to them which you will write here, and which Abdullah will send presently. With regard to your occupation, of which I have ascertained all the details, and which has provided me with the means of obtaining this interview without difficulty, your employer, Mr. Leighton, will not expect to hear from you for a day or two. It rests with you to decide what you will write to him. Since you sell the jewels for a commission, it can no longer matter to you whether they are sold or not; you will not be in a position to receive the profit. If you have them all with you here, the matter is easy. You will write a note resigning your post, and returning the jewels. If on the contrary you have some in the safe at your flat, it will be best to say that you have sold them, and to enclose the necessary amount. I can arrange for a cheque | | 35 from my agents here. You understand that my motive is not robbery."

He paused for a moment. I endeavoured to say something in reply; useless--I was still absolutely dumb. I looked round the room again. Was there no possible outlet through which help might come?

His glance followed mine, and for the first time he smiled.

"If it were possible for you to escape and you did so, Mrs. Delamere," he said, "I should have no fear of you. For your own sake you would never reveal the danger you had run. It would double the risks, already rather great ones, of your profession. It would encourage everyone to take advantage of you; in fact, Mr. Leighton himself would refuse to let you incur them any more. But escape is impossible. Put the thoughts of it aside. You know, or you may not know, that some years ago, in an attack of the hill tribes on a cantonment, a young and beautiful English woman was believed to have perished in the flames of a burning bungalow. This was, how | | 36 ever, a mistake. She was captured while insensible by some of my countrymen, and was carried to the Rajah's palace. She has remained there as his wife ever since, and, though her son cannot inherit the throne, he is the Rajah's favourite child. The Rajah is very much attached to her, and since she pines for her own country and her own people, to which he cannot permit her ever to return, he has thought that it might add to her happiness if she had a companion of her own race. He has commissioned me to arrange this for him. The lady is to be of good birth, young and handsome, clever and high spirited--a dull companion would be useless. She must be one who would not be quickly missed or sought after, as all traces of her must be obliterated, and the transaction must never become known. You fulfil all the requirements, and my intentions are to disguise you as a native woman, passing you off as Guzra Bai's sister, and to return to Kabalpur with you at once. It will be necessary to keep you to a certain extent under the influence of | | 37 drugs, which, for the time, will deprive you of memory and the desire to escape. They will not injure you nor give you pain, and when you arrive at your destination you will regain your usual state. You will be treated always with the greatest kindness, and there is no reason why your life should not be a happy one.

"Now will you write the letter to your servants?"

I nodded assent. I saw that my only chance was to appear submissive, and to gain time--above all, to put off the moment when they would give me the drug of which he spoke.

Abdullah placed the table and writing materials before me and I took up the pen to write.

At that moment there was a subdued knock, and he went hastily to the door and held a whispered colloquy with the ayah, whose voice I recognised.

Ali Mahomed listened attentively, and then said something in his own language, which sounded like an interrogation.

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Abdullah's reply evidently was unpleasant to him, and they argued for some moments. Finally, Abdullah gained his point, and left the room with the ayah. I heard their descending steps with a new sinking at my heart. Was I, then, to be left absolutely alone with this awful man?

He came slowly towards me; then, struck by some new idea, passed out on to the landing, and called softly down to the others. Guzra Bai's voice answered him from the bottom of the house.

Now was my chance my only chance! I rose for an instant my brain went round; I trembled so that my limbs failed me then, desperately, I pulled myself together. It was for life and liberty, I thought. I crept towards the curtain. Ali Mahomed was evidently bending over the stairs, still speaking. I drew the curtain aside his back was towards me. Now! In a flash I was past him and down the first flight. As I turned the corner he was so close behind me that his fingers caught the lace of my cloak. The | | 39 force of my descent tore it away, and I reached the next landing with almost one bound. He was calling Guzra Bai. I could hear her beginning to ascend. I was at the end of the third flight, she was midway up the second, and he with hands outstretched within a few feet of me at the back. The staircase window was half open now, and a long yard extended below it, with a high wall all round and a door at the end.

I jumped from the last step straight on to the sill and dropped. I was conscious of no sensation at all as I did so. The peril was too imminent and deadly for me to realise that I was taking a leap of about sixteen feet, and the force with which I reached the ground almost stunned me, and sent a thrill of pain all through me. But instinctively I picked myself up, and ran straight on to the door, and, stumbling, fell against it. The latch, old and worn, gave way with my weight--the door opened afterwards--I staggered through--thank God! I was in a narrow alley leading to a street.

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I reached the top of it, and as I did so saw Abdullah coming towards me, and within a few paces of me.

With a strangled scream I turned and fled in the opposite direction, the few passers-by stopping and staring at me as I ran. I think if they had tried to stop me, I should have been done for. My strength was almost spent, and a mist was gathering before my eyes. A hansom loitering across the top of the street stopped; I signalled to the man, pointed up the turning he had just quitted and jumped in. As he whipped the horse, and we backed and turned, I saw Abdullah halt a few yards off, and then retreat.

I had dropped my card-case at some time during my flight, but I had a letter in my pocket, and pushing up the trap door I handed the envelope to the cabman.

Then I burst into tears, and I can only remember dimly, as in a dream, arriving at royal Mansions, Victoria Street, and hurrying up to my flat, where the maids, shocked and | | 41 distressed at my condition, vainly sought for some time an explanation of it.

When I at last regained my voice, and told them that some cocaine, taken by mistake, had deprived me of it temporarily, they concluded that I had been to a dentist, and that my sufferings at his hands accounted for my state of nervous exhaustion.

As Ali Mahomed had wisely said, I did not care to make public my terrible experience with him, since it would have seriously damaged my chances in my profession; and when, after a fortnight's rest, I went to see Mr. Leighton, I merely said that my Oriental interview had been unsuccessful, and that the price offered for the jewels was inadequate.

But I mentally resolved to be more wary in my business appointments in the future.