Javan was slow to comprehend. "Where are we going?"
"Into the jungle," said Jotan evenly. "To the house of Rydob!"
Alurna had slept well during the mid-day heat. When she awakened, her first thought was of Meltor and his errand. Lying there, the room darkened against the blazing sun, she allowed herself to think of Jotan, smiling when she realized he was free, now, to fall in love with her. No longer was there a barbarian slave-girl to blind him to the beauty and charm of Urim's daughter.
After a while she sat up, stretched her soft muscles with all the sleek satisfaction of a jungle cat, and summoned Anela.
The slave-girl was aiding her in effecting a leisurely toilet a little later, when a brief rap sounded at the door.
"That must be Meltor," Alurna said contentedly. "Let him in, Anela."
But when the door was opened, it was another man who stood there, his tunic torn and stained, his broad plump face lined with suffering.
"It's Fordak!" cried Anela.
The man staggered to a stool and dropped onto it, exhausted.