"Formerly he was her best hunting lion, but the last time he was used he killed four men and nearly escaped. He has already eaten three keepers who ventured into the arena with him, and he will eat more before good fortune rids us of him.
"Nemone is supposed to entertain a superstition that in some peculiar way her life and the life of Belthar are linked by some mysterious, supernatural bond and that when one dies the other must die. Naturally, under the circumstances, it is neither politic nor safe to suggest that she destroy the old devil. It is odd that he has conceived such a violent dislike for you."
"I have met lions before which did not like me," said Tarzan.
"May you never meet Belthar in the open, my friend!"
XII
THE MAN IN THE LION PIT
As Tarzan and Gemnon turned away from Belthar's cage a slave approached the ape-man and addressed him. "Nemone, the Queen, commands your presence immediately," he said; "you are to come to the ivory room; the noble Gemnon will wait in the anteroom. These are the commands of Nemone, the Queen."
"What now? I wonder," remarked Tarzan as they walked through the royal grounds toward the palace.
"No one ever knows why he is summoned to an audience with Nemone until he gets there," commented Gemnon; "one may be going to receive an honor or hear his death sentence. Nemone is capricious. She is always bored and always seeking relief from her boredom. Oftentimes she finds strange avenues of escape that makes one wonder if her mind—but no! such thoughts may not even be whispered among friends."
When Tarzan presented himself he was immediately admitted to the ivory room, where he found Nemone and Erot much as he had found them the preceding night. Nemone greeted him with a smile that was almost pathetically eager; but Erot only scowled darkly, making no effort to conceal his hatred.