His efforts to discover his whereabouts from this man were futile. The Egyptian was unable to understand him, and the fellow's jargon was quite unintelligible to Helmar. In desperation he continued his way; the prospect of spending the night in wandering through the city being anything but pleasant to him. Night was fast closing in, and he was apparently a long distance from his destination.
Suddenly, as he turned into an almost deserted street, he saw ahead of him a man dressed in European costume, and he increased his pace to overtake him.
To his annoyance, just as he was about to come up with him, the stranger turned into a squalid house, and Helmar was left to rail at his ill luck outside.
Realizing that there was nothing to be gained by going on, he thought he might as well wait in the hopes of the man coming out shortly. He was really feeling very uneasy; the neighbourhood was filthy, and the quietness of the street depressed him.
Sauntering quietly up the street, his attention was unexpectedly drawn to the figure of an Arab emerging from a house on the opposite side. It was now growing dark, and Helmar was quite unable to distinguish the fellow's face; but his furtive movements made him a little curious, and his interest in the man became riveted. He saw the Arab looking sharply along the street from end to end, and, apparently satisfied with his survey, quickly draw back into the shadow of the doorway. Helmar's curiosity now grew keener, and so engrossed was he for the time in the man's stealthy movements that he forgot the real object of his waiting. Consequently he failed to observe that the European had come out of the house he had a few minutes previously entered. Suddenly the figure of a crouching Arab darted from the shadow and walked swiftly and silently up the street.
Looking up the road in the same direction, Helmar was astonished to see the European he had been waiting for hurrying along at a rapid pace, fast disappearing in the gloom of the deserted slum.
The street, except for the two men in front of him, was now quite deserted, and our hero quickened his pace for fear of losing sight of his quarry.
The native had crossed the road, and was now running along with silent footsteps some distance ahead of him. Suddenly, as the fellow passed under the light of a dingy lamp, Helmar caught the glint of a long curved knife he was carrying in his hand.
"Hallo!" he muttered, "there's crime afoot!" and dodging on to the sandy road he hurried on. The European in front was walking leisurely along, totally unconscious of any danger that might be threatening him.
George began to fear something serious was about to happen. The stealthy footsteps of the Arab, his long knife, the pace with which he was overtaking the man ahead, looked decidedly unpleasant.