Part 28 (1/2)
In the garden-roo Saskia had sunk into a chair to get her breath, and seeal wasto appear at his ease, but his lip was quivering
”A near thing that time,” he observed ”It was the blaer cast sharp eyes around the place and coentlemen,” he said ”How many are there of you?
Four uards at all the entrances?”
”They have bombs,” Sir Archie reminded him
”No doubt But I do not think they will use theuns, unless there is no other way Their purpose is kidnapping, and they hope to do it secretly and slip off without leaving a trace If they slaughter us, as they easily can, the cry will be out against them, and their vessel will be unpleasantly hunted Half their purpose is already spoiled, for it is no longer secret Theywill be done by us It's the s I'irl in the wicker chair She looked up wildly, saw him and with a cry of ”Alesha” ran to his ar, while his hand fondled her hair, like athe whole thing in soht he had never in his days seen more nobly matched human creatures
”It is my friend,” she cried triumphantly, ”the friend whom I appointed to meet me here Oh, I did well to trust hi”
As if in ironical answer caing of chords cruellyinternally froie the's hoarse inquiry
”Action stations,” Alexis ordered, for the coal ”The s are the danger The boy will patrol the ground floor, and give us warning, and I and thisto Sime, ”will be ready at the threatened point And for God's sake no shooting, unless I give the word If we take thea to Saskia in Russian and she smiled assent and went to Sir Archie's side ”You and I must keep this door,” she said
Sir Archie was never very clear afterwards about the events of the next hour The Princess was in the maddest spirits, as if the burden of three years had slipped fro as she carriedwhich had once entranced Heritage, but Sir Archie had no ear for music She mocked at the furious blohich rained at the other end, for the door had gone now, and in the windy gap could be seen a blur of dark faces
Oddly enough, he found his own spiritsto meet hers It was real business at last, the qual in him that joy in a scrap which had onceair that worried hi What on earth were his rifles and shot-guns for unless to be used? He had seen the enemy from the verandah wall, and a more ruffianly crew he had never dreaainst such it was surely the duty of good citizens to hole-hearted war
The Princess was huhter,” she crooned, ”came to visit me, and all for the sake----Oh, that poor piano!” In her clear voice she cried soh frootten,” she said ”Paul is there I had forgotten” After that she was very quiet, but she redoubled her labours at the barricade
To theHe called to McGuffog to ask about the garden-rooloo, as he rowing acutely anxious--the anxiety of the defender of a straggling fortress which is vulnerable at a dozen points It see from the rooms beyond the hall Did the back door lie that way? And was not there a sale the place would burn like al
”All quiet,” the Chieftain reported ”Far ower quiet I don't like it
The eneth yet The Russian says a' the indies are terrible dangerous Him and the chauffeur's doin' their best, but ye can't block thae lass panes”
He returned to the Princess, and found that the attack had indeed languished on that particular barricade The withers of the grand piano were left unwrung, and only a faint scuffling infor for an attack elsewhere,” he told hi must stick to their post, for in his belief the verandah door and the garden-room ere the easiest places where an entry in al's whistle blew, and with it cahty crash soht, McGuffog,” Sir Archie bolted into the hall, and, led by the sound, reached what had once been the ladies' bedrooht met his eyes, for the whole framework of oneseeap Alexis inging a fender Three of the enerip of Sihtly clenched on his throat, and one engaged with Dougal in a corner The Die-Hard leader was sore pressed, and to his help Sir Archie went The fresh assault al seized the occasion to s which caused him to roll over It was Spidel's life-preserver which he had annexed that afternoon
Alexis at thesee that table,” he cried, and the thing was jaet the un There's no attack there It's about ti now, or we'll have the whose great bellow resounded down the corridor Sir Archie turned and shuffled back, to beas peacefully as it ht have burned on an old lady's tea-table, revealed theof the garden-roo an inclined bridge over Dougal's ineffectual tubs In front of it stood McGuffog, swinging his gun by the barrel and yelling curses, which, being less to Saskia She herself stood at the hall door, plucking at so hidden in her breast He saw that it was a little ivory-handled pistol
The enemy's feint had succeeded, for even as Sir Archie looked three men leaped into the rooun crashed, but two scrairl Sir Archie met the first with his fist, a clean drive on the jaw, followed by a da hook with his left that put him out of action The other hesitated for an instant and was lost, for McGuffog caught hih the broken fraal was shouting, for the little room beyond the hall was clearly ih the other windy” Out of a corner of his eye Sir Archie caught sight of Alexis, with Si slowly forced towards the the corridor ”Upstairs,” he shouted ”Co Lead on, Princess” He dashed out the lamp, and the place was in darkness