I felt that the rebuke was deserved, and drew in my breath, trying to nerve myself to bear this new disappointment, and to set my brain at work scheming.
It seemed to grow darker just then, the stars fading out behind a thick veil of clouds; and creeping nearer to the doctor I sat down beside where he knelt, listening to the incessant talking of the savages.
We were not above half-a-dozen yards from the back of the great hut; and, now rising into quite an angry shout, now descending into a low buzz, the talk, talk, talk went on, as if they were saying the same things over and over again.
I thought of my own captivity—of the way in which Gyp had come to me in the night, and wondered whether it would be possible to cut away a portion of the palm-leaf wall of the hut, and so get to the prisoner.
And all this while the talking went on, rising and falling till it seemed almost maddening to hear.
We must have waited there quite a couple of hours, and still there was no change. Though we could not see anything for the hut in front of us we could tell that there was a good deal of excitement in the village, consequent, the doctor whispered, upon the absence of a number of the blacks on the expedition against us.
At last he crept from me to speak to Mr Francis.
“It is of no use to stay longer, I’m afraid, my lad,” he whispered; “unless we wait and see whether the hut is left empty when the expedition party comes back, though I fear they will not come back till morning.”
“What are you going to do, then?” I said.
“Ask Francis to suggest a better hiding-place for us, where we can go to-night and wait for another opportunity.”