sikonile’s hut was full. sikonile’s hut, being full, was exceedingly close and stuffy. moreover, it was thick with tobacco smoke; for, unlike the zulus, both men and women of the xosa tribes were great smokers, and so thick was the cloud, having no egress but by percolating through the thatch roof, that none but kafir eyes could have remained open in it for two consecutive minutes. this, with the foetid, musky, human odour combined with that of more or less rancid grease, would have sent the ordinary white man promptly outside, feeling very sea-sick indeed. no white man, however, was there; incidentally a very lucky thing for the white man, and that for other reasons than the one just given.
sikonile was an elderly kafir, and the expression of his massive, bearded countenance was scowling and vindictive as he sat gloomily puffing at his long-stemmed angular pipe. and this was scarcely wonderful, seeing that he was the father of nzinto, the man whom harley greenoak had just shot dead. the fact that the deceased had brought his fate upon his own head did not count for much towards mending matters.
“the people might as well lie down again,” he was saying, continuing the debate, which had already reached a heated pitch. “‘it is not healthy to attempt to snatch a gun from the hand of kulondeka,’” he quoted, with a sneer. “hau! had i been there then, kulondeka would have found it ‘not healthy’ to shoot down the children of gaika, here in their own home. yet, a number of us, all armed, slunk away like stoned curs. hau! like stoned and beaten curs!”
a fierce murmur greeted his words. he went on—
“and such call themselves men. and they all slink away before one. men! hau! i call them dogs. and if they slink away before one white, what will they do when many whites are arrayed against them? what is all this talk about driving the whites into the sea when they are afraid of a single one, alone in their midst? why, our women would make better warriors than they.”
most of those present, elderly or middle-aged men themselves, had sons who had been among the uproarious demonstrators; and liked not the contemptuous denunciation of the speaker. one now spoke.
“not at the bidding of the white man did they hold their hands, sikonile, but at the word of the chief.”
“the word of the chief,” echoed sikonile, sneeringly savage. “au! but matanzima is not a chief. he is the son of the great chief, but he is a boy.”
“yet he is the one to whom all these look up,” put in another. “the time to take vengeance was not yet.”
“not yet? but will it ever be?” cried sikonile, flinging out an arm and glaring around. “you are all afraid of this white man—afraid. hau!”
the disgust and contempt of his tone, especially as conveyed by the last exclamation, stung them somewhat.
“kulondeka is no ordinary white man,” said some one, sullenly. “there is that of tagati about him. many have tried to kill him, and he is still alive. but—where are they?”
“cowards all! fools and cowards! they deserved their death,” was the fierce rejoinder.
“yet, brother,” went on the one who had spoken last, “kulondeka is here among us alone. it is thy son whom he has killed, but thou hast other sons. matanzima is no chief—only the child of one. yonder is his hut, and the white man is here. now take thy other sons, and go and kill him.”
there was a touch of mockery in the tone. the words were, in fact, a challenge. sikonile leapt to his feet.
“that will i do!” he blared forth, gesticulating with anger, for he was worked up to a blaze of revengeful exaltation. “that will i do!” and tearing down a bundle of assegais which hung against the side of the hut, he made for the door. but before he could gain it another voice spoke.
“pause, brother. i have a better plan than that.”
the angry man paused.
“a better plan!” he sneered. “plans—always plans! whau! i like not such. we have heard too much of plans lately. it is now time to act. one act is worth ten times ten plans. yet, what is thy ‘plan,’ mafutana?”
“hear it then, sikonile. what sort of poor revenge would it be to kill kulondeka, to kill him at once so that he feels nothing, and to get thyself and thy sons killed for violating the house of the son of the great chief—for this is surely what would happen? should we not rather collect our sons together, and, stealing out from the kraals by twos and threes, meet after dark, and take him when he leaves to-night to return home? for he will leave to-night.”
a murmur of applause met this proposal. the vengeful father was impressed.
“why, that is something of a plan,” he said. “but what if it should fail? yet, it should not.”
“it should not, for it will be easy,” was the answer. “we can ambush every way by which he will leave. then, think what your revenge will be. we will carry him to the ‘place of the bones,’ and spend the night burning him alive, even as we did the traitor nemvu. whau! what an end for kulondeka! a great, a noble end. you, sikonile, in each of his groans, as the fire eats into sinew and flesh and nerve, will hear the glad laughter of nzinto, whom he slew. now, say. is not my plan the better? it will avoid trouble, for matanzima, to whom all the fighters look up, will never know. and, what a noble revenge it will afford thee.”
an emphatic hum of approval went up from the entire gathering. mafutana was a genius. and then all heads were grouped together in an eager, under-toned discussion, and, seen through the thick, dim smoke-cloud, the grim ferocious faces were as those of demons exulting over the torment of a newly acquired soul.
harley greenoak awoke at sundown, aroused by a light touch from his host, who had been watching carefully over his safety.
“it is nearly time to depart, kulondeka,” said the latter. “to have done so earlier would not have been safe, to remain later would not be safe either; for, bear in mind, i am not the great chief, but only his child. and he has other children.”
there was significance in this. the very short twilight—for darkness falls suddenly under southern skies—was used by greenoak in solemnly repeating his former warnings. then, when it was dark enough, they went outside, where the horse was already standing, all ready and saddled.
“fare thee well, son of the great chief,” said greenoak as he mounted. “my heart is sore for thee and the people if my words pass unheeded. i can say no more.”
matanzima’s face was gloomy, and his tones sad as he answered—
“fare thee well, kulondeka. who can alter or foresee his fate? for thyself, ride with care this night, and with wide-open eyes. yet, who am i to offer counsel to one such as thee.”
the dark shadows of the adjacent bush, soon gained, swallowed up the rider. but he knew it in the dark as in the daylight; knew it as well as—even better than—the savages whose home it was, and who were even then lying, spread out in a line covering some distance, lurking, eager, every faculty of sight and hearing, and even scent, at the fullest tension as they awaited their sure and certain prey. would they seize it? such seemed indeed probable, for now, to make assurance doubly sure, not only lay the waiting enemy in front, but behind, stealthily flitting on, keeping the horseman ever in sight, moved a single form—that of an evil, thick-set, scrabbly bearded savage—the same whom we saw dogging his way in the darkness when he first set forth upon his perilous mission: the bulk, indeed, of whose peril had yet to be encountered.
gaining the high ground, which should shut the valley from view, greenoak looked back. the location lay beneath, quiet under the stars. a twinkle of light from some open hut door or the spark of an outside fire showed in the distance, but there was no sound of dancing or revelry. the night air blew fresh and sweet as he plunged down into a deep bushy valley.
listening intently, he gave forth the cry of a night bird, then again. it was answered. dismounting, he led his horse a few paces—then halted, soothing the animal, as a figure rose out of the gloom with rather startling suddenness. but its apparition seemed to convey no alarm to harley greenoak, for between him and it there now followed a short, low-toned, but very emphatic and earnest conference.
“whau!” ejaculated mafutana, in a smothered whisper.
“do you hear anything, brother?”
sikonile, raising his head, seemed to be trying to pierce the darkness. his broad nostrils snuffed the night air, like those of a buck.
“he comes,” was the answer.
rapidly the word was passed along the line of crouching savages. and now the soft footfall of an unshod horse was plainly audible, advancing straight towards them. hands gripped assegai hafts with fierce and bloodthirsty thrill, yet no weapon was to be used. the white man was to be taken alive, and, as their plans had been laid, he would easily be so taken. a mandate was issued by mafutana to some of the young men, and these moved quickly away down the hill, widening out so that they should give the advancing horseman time to get within the toils, yet not too near, lest the horse should wind them and show alarm.
along the dark ridge the crouching savages lay, tense with excitement; every head raised, listening, like that of some evil snake. then a quick gasp escaped them. just below there was the thud of a heavy fall, and the plunging of frantic hoofs, the jingle of a bit, and the rattle of stones. like lightning they were up and sweeping down upon the spot. but no sound was uttered. this had to be brought through in silence.
already as they arrived, their forerunners had raised the fallen horse, which stood trembling and snorting in terror, and had flung themselves upon and pinioned its rider. others grinned as they untied the long reims which, extended from bush stump to bush stump across the path, had composed the trap which had effected their capture so easily and bloodlessly.
sikonile came forward with a grin of hate upon his countenance that was simply demoniacal. he would have such a sweet revenge now. but as he pushed through the throng to look at the prisoner a murmur of wonder which had arisen had increased to a hubbub. this was not kulondeka at all.
it was one of themselves—a native. in the starlight they could see his face. yet—the horse was that of kulondeka.
“who are you?” asked sikonile, an assegai raised threateningly.
“pato, son of teliso, of the abatembu, under the chief, umfanta,” was the unhesitating answer.
“and kulondeka’s horse? how didst thou come by it?” asked mafutana.
“who is kulondeka?” said the prisoner, wonderingly.
“answer questions, do not ask them,” interposed sikonile, furiously, giving the prisoner a couple of vicious digs in the thigh with his assegai.
“i found this horse down there,” said the latter sullenly, “and it was standing alone, so i took it. if it is a chief’s horse—au! here it is. i thought it was a white man’s.”
“where were you going?” queried mafutana.
but before any answer could be made, an interruption occurred. one of the bystanders, who had been bending down closely scrutinising the prisoner’s face in the starlight, shot upward with a quick ejaculation.
“whau!” he cried, bringing his hand to his mouth. “see, brothers. here is pato, son of teliso, of the abatembu, under the chief, umfanta. should it not rather be mantisa, son of no fengu dog in particular, a spy of the amapolise, under bokelo? do i not know him! hau! he it was who got me a long time in prison, for stealing a sheep which i never stole. ha! welcome to thee, mantisa. for thee we have a warm bed, ah-ah—a bed of fire!”
the unfortunate detective, seeing himself unmasked, realised that the only hope of escape for him was a swift death instead of a long and lingering one by fiery torment. so, instead of answering, he only spat contemptuously. a score of assegais were raised. but sikonile flung himself in the way.
“see you these?” he said. “where is kulondeka?”
“that i know not,” came the sullen reply.
“ha! the fire! the fire will make him speak!” cried several. “to the fire then! to the place of the bones!”
and in a moment the wretched fingo’s arms were tightly bound behind him with raw-hide, and he himself was hustled along, propelled by kicks and blows and assegai prods, towards the place of his ghastly death.
but not until they had got some little way did it become known to the whole party that the horse had disappeared. it had been left standing, just as it had arisen from the ground, with the bridle still on its neck. in the prevailing excitement no one had made it his business to hold it. now it was gone.
