“Don’t look at me, Miss Evie; I’m risking my life to be here, but it’s to save yours. What was the Major thinkin’ of to bring you with him at a time like this?”
“He didn’t bring me; I came,” returned Eveleen with dignity. “Now why would you be risking your life, Tom Carthew?”
“Because they had it all ready to murder the Colonel and the gentlemen two days ago, and though they were put off it then they mean to do it now. You tell the Colonel, ma’am, not to trust Khair Husain Khan. I’ll tell you how he’ll know what the rascal’s up to. He’ll come and offer to post a guard of his servants to protect this place—and if you accept, the guard will murder you all in your beds.”
“Now I wonder will the Colonel believe it?” mused Eveleen, her heart beating a little faster than usual.
“He’d better. Why, ma’am, it was touch and go t’other day. The Khans had made up their minds to cut up the Colonel into little pieces, because he pretended to be their friend and was deceivin’ ’em. Then when he made ’em send away the guards, they had the sherbet ready to poison him—and they’d have done it too, but for what he let drop about bringing the General here. They are fair set on gettin’ hold of the General, and it won’t be cuttin’ into little bits for him. They’ve sworn to put a cord through his nose and drag him round the city at the tail of young Hafiz Ullah’s horse, for the people to see, and after that—well, they call him Satan’s brother after his getting to Sultankot as he did, never runnin’ across any of the bands that was looking for him.”
“I wonder now, did they look very hard?” There must be no showing the white feather, though Eveleen’s hands felt clammy, and her thoughtful voice was a little shaky.
“They say they did, anyhow. Well, you can guess what they think is the proper way to treat the devil. But will the General be coming, ma’am?”
“I’d say he would not.” Relentless cross-examining of Richard and Brian had convinced Eveleen of this. “But sure the Khans will do nothing till he has written to say so?”
“You might have said that yesterday, but something has happened this morning to change their minds. There was a lot of Bharri chiefs on their way here, and they came slap up against the General’s army. Whether it was just brag, or they wanted to pick a quarrel, I don’t know, but they made to ride straight through the camp of the Khemistan Horse, and got taken prisoners. When the news came in, all the Khans cried out at once that it was war now, and the General wouldn’t come. That’s all I know.” His eyes were on the approaching form of Ketty, and he began to rearrange his wares.
“No, but tell me quickly, what do they mean to do?” urged Eveleen.