In Times of Peril: A Tale of India

by G. A. Henty

  CHAPTER III.

  THE FLIGHT.

  The young Warreners and their cousin, hurrying on, soon gained thethick bush toward which they were directing their steps. As theycowered down in its shelter the girls pulled their shawls over theirheads, and with their hands to their ears to keep out the noise of theawful din around them, they awaited, in shuddering horror, their fate.The boys sat, revolver in hand, determined to sell their lives dearly.Ned translated the jemadar's speech, and at his order to search thecompound both felt that all was over, and, with a grasp of each other'shand, prepared to sally forth and die. Then came Saba's act of nobleself-sacrifice, and the boys had difficulty in restraining themselvesfrom rushing out to avenge her.

  In the meantime the night was hideous with noises; musket shots, thesharp cracks of revolvers, shouts, cries, and at times the long shrillscreams of women. It was too much to be borne, and feeling that for thepresent Saba's act had saved them, the boys, laying down their weapons,pressed their hands to their ears to keep out the din. There they satfor half an hour, stunned by the awful calamity, too horror-stricken atwhat had passed, and at the probable fate of their father, to findrelief in tears.

  At the end of that time the fire had burned itself out, and a fewupright posts still flickering with tongues of fire, and a heap ofglowing embers marked where the pretty bungalow, replete with everyluxury and comfort, had stood an hour before.

  Dick was the first to move; he touched Ned's arm.

  "All is quiet here now, but they may take it into their heads to comeback and search. We had better make for the trees; by keeping close tothat cactus hedge we shall be in shadow all the way."

  The girls were roused from their stupor of grief.

  "Now, dears, we must be brave," said Ned, "and carry out our orders.God has protected us thus far; let us pray that He will continue to doso."

  In another five minutes the little party, stealing cautiously out fromtheir shelter, kept along close to the wall to a side door, throughwhich they issued forth into the open. Ten steps took them to thecactus hedge, and stooping low under its shelter, they moved on tillthey safely reached the clump of trees.

  For some time the little party crouched among the thick bushes, thesilence broken only by the sobs of the girls. Ned and Richard saidnothing, but the tears fell fast down their cheeks. The crackling ofthe flames of many of the burning bungalows could be distinctly heard;and outside the shadow of the trees it was nearly as light as day.Yells of triumph rose on the night air, but there was no firing orsounds of conflict, and resistance was plainly over. For a quarter ofan hour they sat there, crushed with the immensity of the calamity.Then Ned roused himself and took the lead.

  "Now, dears, the fires have burned down, and we must be moving, for weshould be far away from here before morning. No doubt others havehidden in the woods round this place, and those black fiends will besearching everywhere to-morrow. Remember what our orders are;" and hepaused for a moment to choke down the sob which would come when hethought of who had given the order, and how it was given. "We were tomake for Meerut. Be strong and brave, girls, as father would have hadyou. I have gone over the course on the district map, and I think I cankeep pretty straight for it. We need not change our clothes now; we cando that when we halt before daylight. We must walk all night, to be asfar as possible away before the search begins. We know this countrypretty well for some miles round, which will make it easier. Come,girls, take heart; it is possible yet that some of the officers havecut their way out, and our father may be among them. Who can say?"

  "I knew that he had talked over with Dunlop and Manners the very bestcourse to take whenever they might be attacked," Dick said in a morecheerful tone, "so they were sure to keep together, and if any one hasgot away, they would." Neither of the boys had at heart the least hope,but they spoke as cheerfully as they could, to give strength andcourage to the girls. Their words had their effect. Kate rose, andtaking her cousin's arm said:

  "Come, Rose, the boys are right. There is still some hope; let us clingto it as long as we can. Now let us be moving: but before we go, let usall thank God for having saved us from harm so far, and let us pray forHis protection and help upon the road."

  Silently the little group knelt in prayer, and when they rose followedNed--who had naturally assumed the position of leader--out into theopen country beyond the grove, without a word being spoken. The moonwas as yet quite young, a favorable state for the fugitives, as itafforded light enough to see where they were going without giving sobright a light as to betray them to any one at a distance.

  "The moon will be down in a couple of hours," Ned said; "but by thattime we shall be beyond where any sentries are likely to have beenplaced on the road, so we can then trust ourselves on that till itbegins to get daylight. We must keep in the fields till we are pastNussara, which is five miles by the road; then we can walk straight on.There is a nullah a few yards on; we had better keep in that for aquarter of a mile; it does not go quite the way we want, but it will besafer to follow it till we are well out of sight of any one who may bewatching the plain."

  They scrambled down into the bed of the nullah. Then Kate said, "Walkon as fast as you can, Ned; we can keep up with you, and if we hurry onwe shan't be able to think."

  "All right," Ned answered; "I will go fast for a bit, but you must notknock yourselves up; we have a long journey before us."

  Walking fast, however, was impossible at the bottom of the nullah, forit was pitch dark between its steep banks, and there were bowlders andstones lying here and there. After half an hour's walking Ned scrambledup and looked back.

  "It is quite safe now," he said; "let us make as straight as we can forNussara."

  Kate Warrener and Rose Hertford have never been able to recall anyincidents of that night's walk. Mechanically, as in a dreadful dream,they followed Ned's guidance, stumbling across little watercourses,tramping through marshy rice-fields, climbing into and out of deepnullahs, now pausing to listen to the barking of a village dog, nowmaking their way through a thick clump of trees, and at last trampingfor hours--that seemed ages--along the dead flat of the highroad. Thisat the first faint dawn of morning they left, and took refuge in athick grove a quarter of a mile from the highway. Before throwingthemselves down to rest, the girls, at Ned's earnest request, tried toeat a piece of biscuit, but tried in vain, they, however, each sipped alittle wine from the bottles, and then, utterly worn out and exhausted,soon forgot their misery in a deep and heavy sleep.

  The sun was upon the point of setting when their companions arousedthem, and they woke up to their sorrows and dangers. The day had passedquietly; the boys, after both sleeping for some four or five hours, hadwatched by turns. No one had approached the wood; but a party of fourSepoys, mounted on horses, had passed from Sandynugghur; and a largerparty had, later in the afternoon, come along in the other direction.From this the boys guessed that a successful revolt had also takenplace at Nalgwa, the next station to Sandynugghur.

  "Now, girls, the first thing to do is to eat. Here are biscuits forsome days, and the two bottles of wine, which we must be sparing of.Dick and I have eaten lots of biscuits, and have had some water from awell at a little distance behind the wood. There was a large gourdlying by it which we have taken the liberty of borrowing. You can drinksome water if you like, but you must each take a glass of wine. Youmust keep up your strength. There is no one in sight, so if you likeyou can go to the well and have a wash. Don't be longer than you canhelp; it would be ruin to be seen before we have changed our clothes.While you are away washing, Dick and I will put on our dresses, andwhen you come back you can do the same. We can stain our faces andhands afterward."

  The girls chose to have their wash first and their meal afterward, andfelt refreshed and brighter after they had done so. Then they dressedin the clothes Saba had provided for them, and could, at any othertime, have laughed at the comicality of their aspect, muffled up inwhite, with only their eyes visible. The awkward shoes were the onlypar
t of the costume to which they objected; but the sight of Europeanboots below the native dress would have betrayed them instantly;however, they determined to adopt them for walking in at nights, orwhen crossing the fields, and to put the native shoes in a bundle, tobe worn in public.

  The boys presently joined them, Ned in the dress of a young Mussulmanzemindar, Dick as his follower.

  "I should not have known you in the least," Rose said; "as far asappearances go, I think we are all safe now."

  When it was quite dark they again started, regained the road, and keptsteadily along it. After two hours' walking they approached a village.After some consultation it was decided that Dick, whose dress was thedarkest and least noticeable, should steal forward and reconnoiter. Ifevery one was indoors they would push boldly through; if not, theywould make a circuit round it. In ten minutes he returned.

  "Ned, there are two troopers' horses standing before the largest houseof the place. I suppose they belong to some of the men of the cavalryregiment at Nalgwa. If we could but steal them!"

  "Splendid, Dick; why should we not? I can get on one, you on the other;one of the girls can sit behind each of us, with her arms round ourwaists. What do you say, girls? With our dress it would be natural forus to be on horseback, and no one would ask any questions. We arepretty safe, because if they come out there are but two of them, and weare more than a match for them with our pistols."

  "It seems a terrible risk to run, Ned; but I do think it would be ourbest plan. What do you say, Rose?"

  "I think we had better try, Kate."

  "Now let us settle everything before we start," said Ned. "We mustmount first, I think, that we may be able to help you more easily; andyou would have less risk of falling off if you get up in front of us.We can change when we have gone half a mile. Will you stand close toDick, Kate, when he mounts; Rose, you keep close to me. The moment weare fairly in the saddle, and have got the reins in our hands, you putyour foot on mine, and take hold of my hand, and climb up in the saddlein front of me. Put your arms round our necks and hold us, because weshall want one hand for the reins, the other for a pistol."

  "Let us cut a stick, Ned, to give them a lick and make them start at agallop."

  Very gently, and with bated breath, they stole up the village. Thehorses were still standing with their reins thrown over a hook in thewall. Very quietly the boys unhooked the reins, but the horses moveduneasily, and objected to their mounting them, for horses accustomed tonatives dislike to be touched by Europeans. However, the boys had justmanaged to climb into their seats when a shutter of the house opened,and a voice said in Hindostanee, "What is fidgeting the horses?" Then ahead looked out.

  "Some one is stealing the horses," he shouted.

  "Quick, girls, up with you," Ned said; and the girls, as light asfeathers, sprang up. "Go along," the boys cried, bringing down theirsticks on the animals' sides. Dick's at once leaped forward, but Ned'shorse only backed. Ned gave his stick to Rose and seized his pistol,which was cocked and ready for use. As he did so a native trooperrushed from the house. As he came out Ned fired, and the man fellforward on his face.

  Startled by the shot, the horse darted off after his companion. For afew minutes they went forward at a gallop, the boys holding on as wellas they could, but expecting every moment to be thrown off. For awhileshouts and cries were heard from the village, and then all was quietagain. The two boys reined in their horses.

  "That was awful," Dick said; "I would rather sit on the yardarm in astorm than ride on that beast any further at the pace we have beengoing."

  The girls had not spoken a word since they started, and they nowslipped to the ground. It was not an easy thing for them to get upbehind, and several slips were made before their attempts weresuccessful. Once seated, they were more comfortable, and they againwent on, this time at an easy canter. After half an hour's ride theycame to a crossroad, and turned up there, going now at a walk. Afterawhile they took a well-marked path running in a parallel direction tothe road; this they followed for some time, passing fearlessly throughone or two small villages.

  Then, feeling by the flagging walk of their horses that they werebecoming fatigued, they plunged deep into a thick wood, dismounted, andprepared for the night. Attached to the saddle of each horse was anose-bag with some forage. These were put on, the horses fastened up,and the little party were soon asleep again.

  Before starting next morning the first care of the boys was to take offthe embroidery of the horse-cloths, and as much of the metal work onthe bridles as could be possibly dispensed with, in order to concealthe fact that the horses had belonged to a British cavalry regiment;then they mounted, with the girls behind them, and rode quietlyforward, taking care not to travel by the main road, as the news of thecarrying off the horses would have been generally known there.

  They passed through several villages, attracting but little attentionas they did so, for there was now nothing unusual in the appearance ofa Mohammedan zemindar and follower riding with two closely-veiled women_en croupe_. Late in the afternoon they stopped at a village store, andNed purchased, without exciting any apparent suspicion, some grain forthe horses. That night they slept as usual in a wood, and congratulatedthemselves on having made fully twenty-five miles of their journeytoward Meerut.

  The next morning, after two miles' riding, they entered a largevillage. As they were passing through it a number of peasants suddenlyrushed out into the road, and shouted to them to stop. They were armedwith sticks and hoes, and a few had guns. Looking behind, Ned saw asimilar body fill up the road behind them, cutting off their escape.

  "Look, Ned, at that old fellow with the gun; that's the man who sold usthe grain last night," Dick said.

  "We must charge them, Dick; there's nothing else to do. Hold tight,girls. Now for your revolver, Dick! Now!"

  And, digging their heels into their horses' side, the boys rode at thecrowd of peasants. There was a discharge of guns, and Dick felt as if ahot iron had been drawn suddenly across his cheek; then they were inthe midst of the crowd, emptying their revolvers with deadly effectamong them; some fell, and the horses dashed forward, followed by theyells of their assailants. A minute later three or four more guns weredischarged, the rear party having now joined the other, and beingtherefore able for the first time to fire.

  Dick heard a little startled cry from Kate.

  "Are you hurt, darling?" he cried in alarm.

  "Nothing to speak of, Dick. Ride on."

  In a quarter of a mile they drew rein, and found that a ball had passedthrough the upper part of Kate's arm, as it went round Dick's body.Fortunately it had gone through the flesh only, without touching thebone. Dick was bleeding copiously from a wound across the cheek.

  "Another two inches to the right," he said, "and it would have taken mefairly in the mouth. It's well it's no worse."

  Kate's arm was soon bandaged up, and a handkerchief tied round Dick'sface. Ned proposed that for Kate's sake they should make a halt at thefirst wood they came to, but Kate would not hear of it.

  "On the contrary, Ned, we ought to press forward as hard as we can, forit is very possible that at that village where we were recognized--Isuppose because they had heard about the horses--they may havedispatched people to the main road, as well as further on to stop ushere; and we may be pursued at any moment, if there happens to be anynative cavalry upon the road. Evidently they are very much in earnestabout catching us, and have sent word to look after four people on twohorses all over the country, or they could not have known about it atthe village yesterday evening."

  "I am afraid you are right, Kate; if we could turn off this road Ishould not fear, but the river cannot be far to our right, and the mainroad is to our left. There is nothing for it but to press straight on.Fortunately, the country is not thickly populated, and there is a gooddeal of jungle. If the worst comes to the worst, we must leave ourhorses and go on foot again. I fear that is more fatiguing for you, butwe can hide ourselves a good deal better."

>   It was late in the afternoon when Rose cried. "They are coming, Ned;there is a party of cavalry behind!"

  Ned looked round; and far back, along the straight road, he saw a bodyof horsemen.

  "They are a long distance behind," he said; "now for a race!"

  The boys plied their sticks, and the horses sprang on at full gallop.

  "How much are they gaining, Rose?" he asked, after twenty minutes' hardriding.

  "They are nearer, Ned--a good deal nearer; but they have not gainedhalf their distance yet."

  "The sun set fully ten minutes ago," Ned said; "in another half-hour itwill be dark. Their horses must be done up, or they would gain fasteron us, as ours have to carry double, and are getting terribly blown;but there is a wood, which looks a large one, a couple of miles ahead.If we can get there five minutes before them, we are safe."

  By dint of flogging their horses they entered the wood while theirpursuers were half a mile behind.

  "Another hundred yards," Ned said, "and then halt. Now, off we get."

  In an instant they leaped off, and gave a couple of sharp blows withtheir sticks to the horses, who dashed off at a gallop down the road.

  It was already perfectly dark in the wood, and the fugitives hurriedinto the thickest part. In five minutes they heard the cavalry comethundering past.

  "We must push on," Ned said; "fortunately, we have done no walking, forwe must be far away by to-morrow morning. They will come up with thehorses before very long, and will know we are in the wood, and theywill search it through and through in the morning."

  A quarter of a mile, and the wood grew thicker, being filled with anundergrowth of jungle.

  "If you will stop here, Ned, I will push on through this jungle, andsee how far it goes. The girls can never get through this. I think weare near the edge of the wood; it looks lighter ahead."

  In ten minutes he came back.

  "Ned, we are on the river; it is not fifty yards from here."

  This was serious news.

  "What a pity we did not take to the left instead of the right when weleft the horses. However, they won't know which way we have gone, andmust watch the whole wood. We must push forward, and, by keeping asclose as we can to the river, shall most likely pass them; besides,they will be some time before they decide upon forming a chain roundthe wood, and as there are only about twenty of them they will be along way apart. There! Do you hear them? They are coming back! Now letus go on again!"

  In ten minutes they reached the edge of the wood. They could seenothing of the horsemen. Keeping in the fields, but close to the lineof jungle that bordered the river, they walked onward for upward of anhour. Then they came upon the road. The river had made a bend, and theroad now followed its bank.

  "Shall we cross it, and keep in the open country, or follow it, girls?"

  "Follow it as long as we can keep on walking," Kate said. "It is in theright direction, and we can go on so much faster than in the fields. Ifwe hear them coming along we can get into the jungle on the bank."

  "Listen, Kate," Rose said a few minutes afterward; "they are following!"

  "I expect," Ned said, "they find that the wood is too big to bewatched, and some of them are going on to get some help from the nextgarrison, or, perhaps, to rouse up a village and press them in thework. Trot on, girls; the jungle is so thick here you could hardlysqueeze yourself in. We have plenty of time; they won't be here forfive minutes yet."