And as Ben Kelham had sat down, she had crept quietly from behind the palms to stand, a shimmering bundle of silks and satins, in front of the man who looked up in annoyance, and then smiled.
You really couldn't be rude to anything so tantalisingly beautiful, especially when the lady of your choice has just shown a certain lamentable want of appreciation in regard to your person and propositions.
"It's one o'clock, fair lady; you must unmask."
And he uttered a cry of astonishment.
Zulannah had lifted her veil.
And the moments sped as she wove the golden web of beauty and desire and love, into which, however, the clumsy fly refused to be enticed.
But Ben Kelham, for all his slowness, was no fool, and understanding that the woman was offering him something outside her usual wares, and understanding also the danger of rousing the wrath of such a woman, he dealt with the matter as delicately as he could.
"—Come but once to my entertainments," she urged. "My girls shall dance for thee, my animals fight for thee."
The man shuddered, sick to the soul at the thought of the means by which this woman enslaved her suitors.
"Am I not beautiful?" she added.