The tall building was in flames when Lin John reached it. The uprising tongues licked his face as he sprung up the ladder no other man dared ascend.
“I will not go. It is best for me to die,” and Mermei resisted her friend with all her puny strength.
“The ladder will not bear the weight of both of us. You are his sister,” calmly replied Sin Far.
“But he loves you best. You and he can be happy together. I am not fit to live.”
“May Lin John decide, Mermei?”
“Yes, Lin John may decide.”
Lin John reached the casement. For one awful second he wavered. Then his eyes sought the eyes of his sister’s friend.
“Come, Mermei,” he called.
“Where is Sin Far?” asked Mermei when she became conscious.
“Sin Far is in the land of happy spirits.”