The eunuch hesitated.
“No can,” he said, with downcast eyes.
“Why not?” asked Archie, impatiently.
“Wi-to no see anybody,” answered the man.
“Great Cæsar! He isn’t drunk again, is he?” I cried, recalling with sudden fear what such a calamity would mean to us.
The fellow was loyal to his chief and would not confess the truth; but it was not hard to guess. It occurred to me that his annoyance over our trouble about the women had sent him upon another spree, fast upon the heels of the last one. But the loss of the Chief Eunuch’s protection was a serious thing to us just then, and evidently Mai Lo, having heard the news, had decided to order an attack at once, a thing he would not otherwise have dared do.
“Shall we barricade the door?” I asked.
“I’ve a better plan than that,” replied Joe, who was a thoughtful fellow and full of resource. “Let us stand in the passage outside and shoot down any one who turns the corner by the dragon tapestry. There are two reasons for adopting this plan. One is that we can reserve the use of the secret panel in case we want to get to the vaults by way of the underground passage, and the other is that we can retire into our rooms as a last resort and bolt the door.”
“And in that case we’d be like rats in a trap,” added Archie.
I saw the wisdom of Joe’s proposal and at once sent our two blacks with revolvers to hold the passage.