“Rali!” she cried softly, “last night I heard your voice; to-day I knew you would come.”
Without time for words of affection, Rali exclaimed:
“Quick, child! retire, seek some clothes of Bezzou’s women and change thy garb with all speed and cover thy fair face well; the men of this camp, who have been enticed away in pursuit of Yofa, who came hither with me to seek thee, may return at any moment. Follow me outdoors when thou art disguised. I go to catch our camels.”
And, with parting glance of deep satisfaction upon the dead man who had sinned so deeply against him, Rali went forth from the hut, still calling, at intervals, his lamentations of misfortune so that no woman or child remaining in camp should suspect him of deceit.
Soon he had caught his camels, for Yofa had driven them near to camp before he had departed in the night. Slowly he brought them in and caused them to kneel under cover of a ruined hut so that he might saddle them unobserved. Then Kahena joined him, in strange clothes and carrying a bundle of wood, the very simplicity of her disguise making safe her passage through the camp.
But at last the services of disguise were unnecessary, and with bounding heart Rali lifted Kahena to her camel. A moment more, and they were speeding south.
About two hours later Rali halted the camels among some sand-dunes, while saddles were adjusted and they rested to partake of some dried dates which Rali produced from one of his leather saddlebags. He carried also a single skin of water, upon which they must depend for the next few days.
Before remounting Rali searched diligently in a sandy gully, then commenced to excavate; and when he stood upright again he carried two rifles in his hands. This was where Yofa and he had buried their arms before entering the camp of the strangers. He then proceeded to extract cartridges from a belt beneath his garment and fully loaded the weapons ere he hung them by their slings to his saddle-head.
WHEN DAY DAWNED THEY WERE IN A STRANGE LAND OF ROUGH, ROCKY HILLS