Part 29 (1/2)

”Stopping the illicit-diamond-buying and selling, for instance,” said Ingleborough sarcastically.

”Exactly!” replied Anson, apparently without noticing the sarcasm; ”and I've been thinking that no doubt I could put a good thing in both your ways. Of course, we have been bad enough friends; but I'll pa.s.s over all that if you'll serve me as faithfully as you did the company. What do you say?”

”Say?” cried West.

”Stop! Hold hard, Oliver!” cried Ingleborough, stopping him short; ”this is a thing that can't be settled in a minute. We want time. All I say now, Mr Anson, is that I'm glad we bear such a good character, seeing that we are illicit-diamond-dealers escaping with the plunder that we haven't got.”

”Exactly!” said Anson. ”Very well, then, I'll give you till to-morrow night to think it over, and you'll soon see which side your bread's b.u.t.tered.”

”Don't stop me, Ingle,” said West hotly. ”I can't stand this. I must speak. This--”

A sharp report from behind the wagon checked further words, and every man made a rush for this place or that in full expectation that a sudden attack had been made upon the laager within the rocky walls.

At the same moment a Kaffir of the blackest type and with his hair greased up into the familiar Zulu ring bounded into sight, tripped, fell upon his hands, sprang up again, ran on, and disappeared, whilst a rush was made for the man who fired, leaving Anson and the prisoners together.

The next minute West's blood felt as if it was running cold in his veins as he saw, only a few yards from him and close to the stone upon which his jacket had been stretched, the sentry slowly re-loading his pistol.

But the coat was gone.

West had hard work to repress a groan. ”My orders were to fire at anyone I saw stealing,” said the man surlily, and West heard every word.

”Well, who was stealing?” asked one of the officers.

”A Kaffir,” replied the sentry. ”I'd got a jacket stretched out upon the stones yonder, to get aired in the suns.h.i.+ne, and I only took my eyes off it for a minute, when I saw a foot rise up from behind a stone, grab hold of the coat with its toes--”

”Nonsense!” cried the officer; ”a foot could not do that!”

”Not do it?” said the man excitedly. ”It had to do it; and it was creeping away, when I fired, and the black sprang up and ran.”

”Where's the jacket?”

The officer's question woke an echo in West's breast, and he started, for it was just as if the question was repeated there, and it seemed to be echoed so loudly that he fancied those near must have heard it.

”He's got it, I suppose,” said the sentry coolly. ”Carried it away, and a bullet too somewhere in his carca.s.s.”

A miserably despondent feeling attacked West at these words, for he had clung to the hope that he might be able to recover the despatch, succeed in escaping and delivering it in safety, however late; while now the desire to get away died out, for how could he return to Kimberley and confess that he had failed?

He turned to glance at Ingleborough, who met his eyes and then shrugged his shoulders as much as to say: ”It's a bad job, and I pity you.”

At that moment a hand was clapped heavily upon West's shoulder, and the Boer who had saluted him so roughly pointed to the wagon, and he saw that his companion was being treated in the same way, while, the scare being over, upon their walking back and preparing to climb in, they were called upon to stop. Naturally the prisoners obeyed, and, turning, they found the group of Boers in earnest conversation once more with Anson, who at the end of a few minutes nodded decisively and approached his two old fellow-clerks, making West's heart begin to thump with excitement and his eyes gleam, for the despair he felt at the loss he had sustained made him ready to turn fiercely upon the first enemy who addressed him.

”Take it calmly!” whispered Ingleborough. ”Let me diplomatise. You'll do no good by making a row.”

”Take it calmly!” whispered back West, ”and at a time like this! I can't!”

”Look here, you two,” said Anson coolly. ”Let's have no more bones about the matter. These gentlemen say they have too much to think about to bother over any s.h.i.+lly-shallying on the part of a couple of prisoners. You know it's a good chance, and I've told them you'll both join along with me. Just tell them out and out you will.”

”You miserable renegade, how dare you!” cried West fiercely.

”Here, what does that mean?” cried the Boer commandant sharply.

”Shamming!” replied Anson, with a contemptuous laugh. ”They're going to join us, knowing, as they do, that the game is all up at Kimberley; but they put on all this make-believe. They want to be able to say that they were forced to serve, so as to hedge--so as to make it all comfortable with their consciences, as they call them.”