Part 21 (1/2)

That night they camped in the mountains, intending to march at daybreak towards the British camp. When the sun rose, however, they found to their surprise that the whole column was already on the line of march, moving towards the east in pursuit of the retreating enemy.

When they reached the scene of the bivouac the camp-fires were still burning, but no sign of life remained.

The British column had vanished into the bush; and only a few hospital-wagons were to be seen trundling slowly southward.

In the centre of the deserted bivouac stood a tall solitary tree, and it was under this that they rested throughout the heat of the day.

Fernando, who had been dozing, rose to his feet, stretched and yawned.

As he did so he caught sight of a star-shaped cut in the bark of the tree, and on the instant it was as if the man had become transfigured.

His eyes lit up, his lips smiled. Amazement, delight, and infinite pleasure were stamped on every feature of his face.

”What is it?” asked Harry, at a loss to explain the man's behaviour.

”Heaven be praised!” he cried. ”My brother is still alive!”

”Alive!”

”Yes. Cortes blazed that tree, and the blaze is not one day old. Last night he was here--in the midst of the British camp.”

”Are you sure of it?” asked Braid.

”I know,” Fernando answered with conviction. ”In the days when we hunted together we sometimes lost one another in the bush, and on such occasions we blazed the trees along the tracks of bush elephants in just such a manner as this.”

Harry Urquhart looked about him.

”There is no sign of Cortes here,” he said. ”He cannot have left with the British?”

”No,” said Fernando. ”He is hiding somewhere. Let me think, where would he go. Both he and I know this district well.”

The man paused a moment, standing perfectly still. Then, on a sudden, with an exclamation, he set off running towards the hills.

He did not return until long after nightfall; and then it was with the joyful news that he had found his brother, sound asleep--beside three boxes of German ammunition.

Without delay, guided by Fernando, the whole party set off in haste.

They found Cortes, sleeping heavily, in a little dried-up watercourse well screened by trees. It was characteristic of Fernando that he had not awakened his brother.

Harry bent down and touched the sleeper on the shoulder. The man sat up, rubbed his eyes, and then looked about him. The light of the moon fell full upon his face.

Harry grasped his hand and shook it warmly.

”You escaped?” he cried.

”Yes,” said Cortes. ”When we charged through the Germans, my foot struck against a boulder and I fell upon my face. I think the fall did some injury to my wound--the wound I had received from the Black Dog; for, when I tried to run, I found myself unable to do so.

”You were then some distance ahead of me,” he continued. ”I feared I would be overtaken. For a moment I knew not what to do. Then I came to a place where there was a great hole in the ground covered with bushes, and there I hid, allowing the Germans to pa.s.s.

”When they had gone, I got to my feet and tried to think matters out. I knew where my brother would take you; I knew he would go to the old fort. I might have rejoined you by way of the tunnel. I thought of doing so, but in the end I decided to go in search of ammunition, of which I thought you might possibly run short. British Government ammunition would be no good, as--with the exception of one Express--we have all got Mauser rifles. So three times I crept by night into the German camp, and each time returned with a box of ammunition. I secured also a haversack of revolver ammunition. Their sentries are sleepy dogs.”