Trapped by Malays Part 41

There was a faint tint of red now right away over the top of the distant trees, and what seemed to be a mountain appeared above the jungle; but it brought no return of the hope, to Archie, as it grew redder and redder, it looked blood-like--a forecast, as it were, of the horror and despair that were soon to come upon him in the shape of a dreadful truth. For Peter had not come back; and even if he were to come now, it would only be to be seen and made a closer prisoner; the secret of his way out would be known, and they would be more carefully imprisoned. He must be seen now, for there was the distant trumpeting of the advancing elephants, and it was quite light enough for the sentry to make his way along the forest path to take his place beneath the tree, and perhaps come to peer in first to see if his prisoners were safe.

Archie thought that perhaps the elephants might come by first, and then contradicted himself as he felt convinced that it would be the sentry; and as he peered forth from the hole, with the cold chill of despair increasing, there, far down the path, came the squat figure, with the light playing upon the end of his spear.

"It's all over," thought the prisoner; and then he almost fell from the hole, and turned to stare wildly up at the mats which sloped down to the eaves of the building, and saw a leg thrust through hastily, then another, and the next moment Peter Pegg's toes were kicking at the wall as he struggled, hanging by one hand, to rearrange the attap mat of the roof, and then, panting and breathless, he lowered himself down and dropped at Archie's feet.

"Oh, I say!" he groaned. "That was close! Sentry's coming down the path."

"Yes, I saw him. Did he see you?"

"No. I was creeping along like an old tom-cat to get round to the back, and, my word, ain't I scratched! Talk about thorns!"

"Oh Pete, how you frightened me!" said Archie faintly.

"Frightened you, sir? Well, didn't he frighten me?"

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX.

MUST CHANCE IT.

The sound of a step outside made Peter Pegg throw himself quickly down in a pile of the crushed leaves, burying his face in his hands, while Archie began to walk slowly up and down, conscious the while, through the shutting out of the morning light, that their guard had come up to the side of their prison and looked in, before going back to the sheltering tree, where he squatted down, to watch carelessly the coming of the elephants, one of which made for the hole, and was in the act of thrusting its trunk through, when it was charged by its big companion, the Rajah, who uttered a fierce squeal and drove the intruder away, before inserting his own trunk as usual, making no scruple about taking his customary refreshment from Archie's hand, having during the past few days grown accustomed to the subaltern's presence, and ending by giving the lad a few of the friendly touches that he was in the habit of bestowing upon Peter Pegg.

As soon as the elephant had gone, and after giving a glance at their guard, Archie, who was burning to listen to what his fellow-prisoner had to say, lay down beside him, under the impression that weariness had kept him from rising to attend to the elephant's visit.

He found him so soundly asleep that he did not even respond to a sharp shake of the arm which Archie gave him on receiving no reply to his whispers; and then he had to contain himself till evening, when their usual visitors came; and it was not till long after, when they were once more alone, that the young private suddenly started up.

"Have I been asleep?" he said half-wonderingly.

"Asleep! Yes; and I want to know what you have found out."

"Let's have a drink and something to eat first. I feel half-starved."

"Yes, of course--of course. Go on."

"Now," said Peter, after a ravenous attack upon the bread and fruit.

"Oh, here, this is good! Only I think it's time we got some meat. I'd give anything for a bit of commissariat bacon. You want to hear what I did, sir. Well, it was next to nothing but crawl like a slug in and out amongst trees, scratting one's self with that long, twining, climbing palm, and not once daring to stand up and walk."

"Well, but what did you find out?"

"Nothing at all, sir, except that there's a bit of a lodge here which seems as if it might belong to the Rajah, and be where he lived and slept."

"And was he there?"

"Oh no, sir; there's n.o.body there, only about a dozen Malay chaps, besides them as come to see us; and then there's a very big helephant-shelter, like this, only quite new and good, at the end of that there left path; and right away beyond that, in a sort of clearing where the jungle has been cut down--if I didn't tell you before--there's some big trees and a sort of scaffold of bamboos that looks like a shelter such as any one would climb up to shoot tigers, and under it some bones, just as if a buffalo had been tied up for a bait."

"Yes, I see," said Archie. "Well, go on."

"What about?"

"About what you found next."

"I didn't find nothing next, only paths--helephant-paths that go right away somewhere."

"Yes. Go on."

"Well, I did go on as far as I dared, sir; but it was all dark, and I couldn't do anything so long as the Malay chaps were talking, and when they were quiet I was afraid to stir for fear of waking them up."

"But didn't you find out where the paths led to?"

"No, sir. I did try."

"Well, but didn't you strike out into the jungle?"

Peter chuckled.

"Strike out, sir! Why, you're shut in everywhere, and it's like trying to break through a sort of natural cane basket."

"Then you really have done nothing?"

"No, sir; only found that this seems to be the place in the forest where somebody comes to shoot tigers. And talk about them chickens--that's why I did not go so far as I might. Every now and then I could hear one of them calling to its mate; and the first time it scared me so that I swarmed up a tree into the shelter or scaffold sort of place, where you could sit down."

"Well, what then?" said Archie impatiently.

"Well, sir, I sat down."

"Naturally," said Archie.

"And then, when I thought it safe, and I was going to climb down in the dark to have another look, _mi-a-o-u_! There was that there great p.u.s.s.y again--and he was a whopper!"

"But you couldn't see him?"

"No, sir; it was too dark. I knew he was a whopper, though, by the size of his squeak. But I am pretty sure that he could see me, for he seemed to come and sit upright in the middle of the clearing, and began to purr. Blessed if he didn't sound just like a thres.h.i.+ng-machine out in the fields at home after harvest-time."

Archie was silent for a few moments, and Peter Pegg went on quietly and thoughtfully:

"Yes, sir; it sounded just like that."

"Then you stopped up in that shelter for long enough?"

"I just did, sir--for hours."

"Did you go to sleep?"

"Did I go to sleep, sir? No! Never felt so full of wide-awake in my life. Why, if you had heard that there thing roar--"

"I did hear it roar," said Archie quietly; "and it kept me awake all night."

"Hark at that now, sir," said Peter. "My word, Mister Archie, sir!