“Chances are those bandits were planning on surprising us while we slept,” he said quietly. “They figured that the time to get the camels they wanted was during our afternoon siesta. But it apparently didn’t occur to them that we would set a guard.
“Now the thing for us to do is get together and give them a real welcome with bullets. They’ll probably come around the back of the oasis, where our dromedaries are grazing. We’ll go around there and hide beside that sand dune. Then when the robbers—and I think that’s who the newcomers are—come, we’ll fire a volley of bullets into the air. If we find we can’t frighten them away, we’ll shoot their camels from under them. Then if that fails, we’ll have to shoot the men.”
The others thought this good advice.
“We must act cautiously, though,” warned Mr. Lewis, as they made their way to the back of the oasis.
When they came to the dune, they crouched down and waited. Tishmak glanced around the corner.
A moment later he drew back, his face scowling. He mumbled quietly to Fekmah.
“They’re coming,” the latter said. “And they are the robbers.”
The swishing of footsteps grew louder, indicating that the Arabs were coming nearer.
“Now!” said Mr. Lewis. “Fire in line, aiming at the sky. Then we’ll see what happens.”
Seven rifles spoke up in rapid succession, a dense cloud of smoke arising.