“What an ingenious idea!” she said. “But there must be some good in him or he would have killed me when I was in his power.”
“There is that in his favour. Yet I wish I could think that he had no worse object in view in not killing you. He is one of the Abantwana ’Mlimo, and I have had my eye on him for some time. The other man wore a police uniform, you say? You were not able to catch his name?”
“No. You see, I don’t understand a word of the language.”
“H’m. That’s a pity, for your description of him almost tallies with that of the greatest rascal unhung, and whom I hope will not very long remain unhung.”
“This is not the way I came in by,” said Nidia. “Look. I don’t remember that water-hole.”
They had gained the river-bed, and before them lay a still deep pool. But the grisly remains which lay beneath its placid waters rose not up in judgment against the cruel murderer, who sat bound in his own den up above; and little did they who now passed it dream of the shrieking tragedy of which it had more than once been the scene in the dead of night. And the wizard? At that moment even he was beginning to taste of some of the terror which he had delighted in meting out to his helpless victims, for he himself was now helpless, and the evil beast having returned, and being by some mysterious instinct aware of the fact, was tearing and scratching and growling at the fastenings of the hut door in order to get at its more evil master, who, for his part, in spite of the extra precaution, was momentarily growing more and more anxious lest it should succeed. One taste of white flesh he had promised his “familiar”! The probability was that ere the day should close it would have gorged its fill of black.