Part 18 (1/2)
”Now, Beautiful One!” he cried, and then, ”Ja-don! what do you here?”
Jane Clayton turned to follow the direction of Lu-don's eyes and there she saw fraure of a warrior, upon whose massive features sat an expression of stern and unco,” replied Ja-don, ”to reer to the Forbidden Garden”
”The king defies h priest of Jad-ben-Otho?” cried Lu-don
”It is the king's command-I have spoken,” snapped Ja-don, in whose n of either fear or respect for the priest
Lu-don well knehy the king had chosen this er whose heresy was notorious, but whose power had as yet protected him from the lance at the thongs hanging fro Why not? If he could but maneuver to entice Ja-don to the opposite side of the chamber!
”Come,” he said in a conciliatory tone, ”let us discuss the matter,” and moved toward the spot where he would have Ja-don follow hi to discuss,” replied Ja-don, yet he followed the priest, fearing treachery
Jane watched theure of the warrior she found reflected those ade and honor that the profession of arms best develops In the hypocritical priest there was no redeeht best choose the warrior With him there was a chance-with Lu-don, none Even the very process of exchange froht offer sos and decided, for Lu-don's quick glance at the thongs had not gone unnoticed nor uninterpreted by her
”Warrior,” she said, addressing Ja-don, ”if you would live enter not that portion of the roolance upon her ”Silence, slave!” he cried
”And where lies the danger?” Ja-don asked of Jane, ignoring Lu-don
The wos ”Look,” she said, and before the high priest could prevent she had seized that which controlled the partition which shot doard separating Lu-don froly at her ”He would have tricked me neatly but for you,” he said; ”kept me imprisoned there while he secreted you elsewhere in the mazes of his temple”
”He would have done more than that,” replied Jane, as she pulled upon the other thong ”This releases the fastenings of a trapdoor in the floor beyond the partition When you stepped on that you would have been precipitated into a pit beneath the temple Lu-don has threatened me with this fate often I do not know that he speaks the truth, but he says that a dee GRYF”
”There is a GRYF within the temple,” said Ja-don ”What with it and the sacrifices, the priests keep us busy supplying theh the victims are so our own people He has had his eyes upontime This would have been his chance but for you Tell me, woman, why you warned me Are we not all equally your jailers and your enemies?”
”None could be more horrible than Lu-don,” she replied; ”and you have the appearance of a brave and honorable warrior I could not hope, for hope has died and yet there is the possibility that ah they be of another race than mine, there is one ould accord honorable treath she be a wo minute ”Ko-tan would make you his queen,” he said ”That he told me himself and surely that were honorable treatht make you a slave”
”Why, then, would he h in fear his words h he did not tell me so in fact, that you are of the race of Gods And why not? Jad-ben-Otho is tailless, therefore it is not strange that Ko-tan should suspect that only the Gods are thus His queen is dead leaving only a single daughter He craves a son and what more desirable than that he should found a line of rulers for Pal-ul-don descended from the Gods?”
”But I am already wed,” cried Jane ”I cannot wed another I do not want hi,” replied Ja-don si
”You will not save me then?” she asked
”If you were in Ja-lur,” he replied, ”I ”
”What and where is Ja-lur?” she asked, grasping at any straw
”It is the city where I rule,” he answered ”I am chief there and of all the valley beyond”
”Where is it?” she insisted, and ”is it far?”
”No,” he replied, s, ”it is not far, but do not think of that-you could never reach it There are too many to pursue and capture you If you wish to knoever, it lies up the river that empties into Jad-ben-lul whose waters kiss the walls of A-lur-up the western fork it lies ater upon three sides Inable city of Pal-ul-don-alone of all the cities it has never been entered by a foeman since it was built there while Jad-ben-Otho was a boy”