"That will assuredly be awkward, Mir Jan."
"It will, sahib. Soul of my father, if we had but half a troop with us—"
But they had not, and they were both so intent on the conversation that they were momentarily off their guard. Iris was more watchful. She fancied there was a light rustling amidst the undergrowth beneath the trees on the right. And she could hiss too, if that were the correct thing to do.
So she hissed.
Jenks swarmed half way up the ladder.
"Yes, Iris?" he said.
"I am not sure, but I imagine something moved among the bushes behind the house."
"All right, dear. I will keep a sharp look-out. Can you hear us talking?"
"Hardly. Will you be long?"
"Another minute."