Rujub, the Juggler

by G. A. Henty

“That will do, Rujub, it is my turn now.”

After a short search they found stairs leading down from the terrace, and after passing through some empty rooms reached a door opening into the courtyard.

“Do you stay here, Rujub,” Bathurst said. “They will take me for one of themselves. If I succeed without noise, I shall come this way; if not, we will go out through the gate, and you had best leave by the way we came.”

The door was standing open, and Bathurst, grasping a heavy tulwar, went out into the courtyard. Keeping close to the house, he sauntered along until he reached the grated windows of the prison room. Three lamps were burning within, to enable the guard outside to watch the prisoners. He passed the two first windows; at the third a figure was standing. She shrank back as Bathurst stopped before it.

“It is I, Miss Hannay—Bathurst. Danger threatens you, and you must escape at once. Rabda is waiting for you outside. Please go to the door and stand there until I open it. I have no doubt that I shall succeed, but if anything should go wrong, go and lie down again at once.”

Without waiting for an answer, he moved towards the fire.

“Is that you, Ahmed?” one of the warders said. “We all seem sleepy this evening, there is something in the air; I felt half inclined to go off myself.”

“It is very hot tonight,” Bathurst replied.

There was something in his voice unfamiliar to the man, and with an exclamation, “Who is it?” he sprang to his feet. But Bathurst was now but three paces away, and with a bound was upon him, bringing the tulwar down with such force upon his head that the man fell lifeless without a groan. The other two leaped up with shouts of “Treachery!” but Bathurst was upon them, and, aided by the surprise, cut both down after a sharp fight of half a minute. Then he ran to the prison door, turned the key in the lock, and opened it.

“Come!” he exclaimed, “there is no time to be lost, the guards outside have taken the alarm,” for, by this time, there was a furious knocking at the gate. “Wrap yourself up in this native robe.”