Part 5 (1/2)
”Now, Marie, be ready,” I gasped, lifting the pistol
”Oh, Christ receive me!” she answered faintly ”It won't hurt ,” I whispered; as with the cold sweat pouring from an to press the trigger My God! yes, I actually began to press the trigger softly and steadily, for I wished to make no mistake
It was at this veryflaroans of wounded and dying men, that I heard the sweetest sound which ever fell uponfired, many shots, and quite close by
”Great Heaven!” I screamed; ”the Boers are here to save us Marie, I will hold the door while I can If I fall, scrah the --you can do it froround, and run towards the firing There's a chance for you yet, a good chance”
”And you, you,” she moaned ”I would rather die with you”
”Do what I bid you,” I answered savagely, and bounded forward towards the rocking door
It was falling outward, it fell, and on the top of it appeared two great savages waving broad spears I lifted the pistol, and the bullet that had been meant for Marie's brain scattered that of the first of them, and the bullet which had been meant for my heart pierced that of the second They both went down dead, there in the doorway
I snatched up one of their spears and glanced behindon to the chest; I could just see her through the thickening smoke Another Quabie rushed on Hans and I received hie that they went through hiht, both of us were thrown backwards to the ground I scraain, defenceless now, for the spear was broken in the Kaffir, and awaited the end Looking back once h theor abandoned the atte herself by her right hand In ai and dragged it fro that it would serve to kill her, then turned to do the deed
But even as I turned I heard a voice that I kneell shout: ”Do you live, Marie?” and in the doorway appeared no savage, but Henri Marais
Slowly I backed before him, for I could not speak, and the last dreadful effort of my will seemed to thrust me towards Marie I reached her and threw ory blade round her neck Then as darkness came over me I heard her cry:
”Don't shoot, father It is Allan, Allan who has saved my life!”
After that I remember no round senseless
Whenon the floor of the wagon-house in the back yard Glancing from my half-opened eyes, for I was still speechless, I saw Marie, white as a sheet, her hair all falling about her dishevelled dress She was seated on one of those boxes that we put on the front of wagons to drive from, ”voorkissies”
they are called, and as her eyes atching me I knew that she lived
By her stood a tall and dark youngher hand and looking at her anxiously, and even then I felt angry with his; for instance,at _me_ anxiously, and outside in the yard, for there were no doors to the wagon-house, a nuuns in their hands, soers In the shadow, too, against the wall, stoodall over Not far froround, its flank quite red
I tried to rise and could not, then feeling pain in h, looked and saw that it was red also As a h it and hit upon the bone Although I never felt it at the tireat Quabie whom Hans and I had received upon our spears, doubtless as he fell Hans, by the as there also, an awful and yet a ludicrous spectacle, for the Quabie had fallen right on the top of hiined There he sat upon the ground, looking upwards, gasping with his fish-like asp, I remember, fashi+oned itself into the word ”Allehty,” a favourite Dutch expression
Marie was the first to perceive that I had co herself free froered towardswords that I could not catch, for they choked in her throat Then Hans took in the situation, and wriggling his unpleasant self to my other side, lifted :
”Praise be to God, he lives! Allan, lishman should”
”Had to save my own skin if I could, thank you, father,” I lishman more than any other sort ofin Dutch, although he evidently understood our language
”The point is one that I will not argue now, sir,” answeredhimself up ”But if what I hear is true, there was a French to the saise to you”
”Thank you, sir; as it happens, I do, half The rest of lish, thank God”
”God is thanked for s that must surprise Him,” replied my father in a suave voice
At that reeable conversation, which even then both angered and amused me faintly, came to an end, for the Heer Marais entered the place
As ht have been expected in so excitable a itation Thankfulness at the escape of his only, beloved child, rage with the Kaffirs who had tried to kill her, and extreme distress at the loss ofeonistic ele fu He rushed up toof the story of the defence), calledthat God would reward me Here I an to rave at Leblanc, who had brought all this dreadful disaster upon his house, saying that it was a judg sheltered an atheist and a drunkard for so many years, just because he was French and a man of intellect Someone, my father as a reat sense of justice, reminded him that the poor French any criht have committed