“Ah, Zeemit,” she murmured, “I am so glad you are here. Mr. Gordon has gone out with Lieutenant Harper, and I am very lonely and nervous. I think I shall go up and see my sister; she will be dull now her husband is away.”
“No, missy, you must not go,” answered Zeemit firmly.
“And why must I not, Zeemit?”
“Because there is great danger coming to your countrymen and women; and my love for you prompts me to save you.”
She caught the old ayah by her skinny arm, and, in a voice choked with emotion, said—
“What do you mean, Mehal? If there is danger, does it not threaten my mamma and sister as well as me?”
“Yes, but there is greater safety indoors; for every white man who shows himself, there are a hundred bullets waiting to pierce his heart.”
Flora uttered a scream, and she clutched the skinny arm tighter, as if in that weak old woman she saw her only refuge.
“Oh, Zeemit,” she cried, “if this is true, what will become of Walter?”