登陆注册
5254700000097

第97章 CHAPTER XXXI(2)

`But she moved on swiftly, and he followed her into the courtyard. All its fences had fallen in a long time ago; the neighbours' buffaloes would pace in the morning across the open space, snorting profoundly, without haste; the very jungle was invading it already. Jim and the girl stopped in the rank grass. The light in which they stood made a dense blackness all round, and only above their heads there was an opulent glitter of stars.

He told me it was a beautiful night--quite cool, with a little stir of breeze from the river. It seems he noticed its friendly beauty. Remember this is a love-story I am telling you now. A lovely night that seemed to breathe on them a soft caress. The flame of the torch streamed now and then with a fluttering noise like a flag, and for a time this was the only sound. "They are in the storeroom waiting," whispered the girl; "they are waiting for the signal." "Who's to give it?" he asked. She shook the torch, which blazed up after a shower of sparks. "Only you have been sleeping so restlessly," she continued in a murmur. "I watched your sleep, too.""You!" he exclaimed, craning his neck to look about him. "You think I watched on this night only!" she said, with a sort of despairing indignation.

`He says it was as if he had received a blow on the chest. He gasped.

He thought he had been an awful brute somehow, and he felt remorseful, touched, happy, elated. This, let me remind you again, is a love story;you can see it by the imbecility, not a repulsive imbecility, the exalted imbecility of these proceedings, this station in torchlight, as if they had come there on purpose to have it out for the edification of concealed murderers. If Sherif Ali's emissaries had been possessed--as Jim remarked--of a pennyworth of spunk, this was the time to make a rush. His heart was thumping--not with fear--but he seemed to hear the grass rustle, and he stepped smartly out of the light. Something dark, imperfectly seen, flitted rapidly out of sight. He called out in a strong voice, "Cornelius! O Cornelius!"A profound silence succeeded: his voice did not seem to have carried twenty feet. Again the girl was by his side. "Fly!" she said. The old woman was coming up; her broken figure hovered in crippled little jumps on the edge of the light; they heard her mumbling, and a light, moaning sigh. "Fly!"repeated the girl, excitedly. "They are frightened now--this light--the voices. They know you are awake now--they know you are big, strong, fearless . . ." "If I am all that," he began, but she interrupted him. "Yes--to-night!

But what of tomorrow night? Of the next night? Of the night after--of all the many, many nights? Can I be always watching?" A sobbing catch of her breath affected him beyond the power of words.

`He told me that he had never felt so small, so powerless--and as to courage, what was the good of it? he thought. He was so helpless that even flight seemed of no use; and though she kept on whispering, "Go to Doramin, go to Doramin," with feverish insistence, he realized that for him there was no refuge from that loneliness which centupled all his dangers except--in her. "I thought," he said to me, "that if I went away from her it would be the end of everything somehow." Only as they couldn't stop there for ever in the middle of that courtyard, he made up his mind to go and look into the storehouse. He let her follow him without thinking of any protest, as if they had been indissolubly united. "I am fearless--am I?" he muttered through his teeth. She restrained his arm. "Wait till you hear my voice,"she said, and, torch in hand, ran lightly round the corner. He remained alone in the darkness, his face to the door: not a sound, not a breath came from the other side. The old hag let out a dreary groan somewhere behind his back. He heard a high-pitched almost screaming call from the girl.

同类推荐
  • 注法华本迹十不二门

    注法华本迹十不二门

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 郁洲遗稿

    郁洲遗稿

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 续贞元释教录

    续贞元释教录

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 状留篇

    状留篇

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 修文

    修文

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
热门推荐
  • 别难过你还有我

    别难过你还有我

    ……………………………………听说我们以前见过……………………………………是的,我们也曾相爱过……………………………………算了,回不去了 ……………………………………我也不想再爱你了,我累了
  • 植物旅途之超时空大战

    植物旅途之超时空大战

    一场时空风暴让小坚果希纳意外的失去了家人,在不断的探查后,希纳终于发现:这场时空风暴中,原本被封印千年的僵尸博士复活了。坚果能否打败僵尸博士?找回家人呢?
  • 我在最远的距离

    我在最远的距离

    我看见你靠在围栏边上抽烟,吐出的烟圈在你头顶慢慢消失,到底是什么让你这么难做决定呢?
  • 针经指南

    针经指南

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • THE AMERICAN

    THE AMERICAN

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 竹马好像又生气了

    竹马好像又生气了

    这部小说主要写的是夏梓雨和李俊霖的爱情故事。
  • 意能战士

    意能战士

    2120年,地球迎来新时代~意能时代!一个崭新而无比神秘的文明世界在此诞生!实现了真正意义上的一切皆有可能!意能战士、意能战车,意能食物、意能武器…人们终于可以驾驶飞船,轻易到达任何无比遥远的星系!各种生命星系的文明世界,映入人类的眼帘!五行文明、光之文明、暗之文明、风之文明、雷之文明、时之文明、空之文明…
  • 大政治家的故事(古今中外英雄伟人故事系列)

    大政治家的故事(古今中外英雄伟人故事系列)

    秦始皇尽管是一位暴君,但他也是统一中国的皇帝。没有他,中国的统一也许要推迟很多年,由此,我们可以得出这样一个推理:中国的整体进步和发展,也许要推迟很多年,秦始皇不但是一个古代君主,也是一个古代著名的政治家。
  • 村庄传

    村庄传

    天地21世纪初的中国有一位诗人叫陈二,他身份证上名字是陈多宝。那个时候大多数中国诗人都有一个笔名,有些还有好几个笔名。诗人陈二,也就是陈多宝,1971年出生于浙东台州一个叫山根陈村的小山村。据《海东陈氏族谱》记载,陈氏祖先从南宋淳熙年间开始在此生息繁衍,经过了七八百年,陈多宝出生时依然只有六七十户人家。中国人选择聚居的地方都要看风水,好风水最简单的模式是:村后有靠山,村前有流水。
  • 你说你到底是谁

    你说你到底是谁

    葛新蒙了,几乎晕倒在地。真是太阳打西边出来了,兄弟姊妹们居然认为他是个冒牌货,这让葛新心里产生巨大的烦恼与痛苦。过去穷的时候兄弟姊妹们在一起还挺正常,现在突然暴富,性情就变得乖张,心理变得怪僻,说话不着调,思维也变得很滑稽。葛新的不好情绪也影响到了他的这些兄弟姊妹们,最小的徐八耳不耐烦了,站起来,梗着脖子说,日他娘,别废话了,我还有牌局呢,我走了。说着,徐八耳走了。其余“耳们”也说有这事那事走了。葛新看兄弟姊妹们都不想搭理他,也都不好惹,只好垂头丧气地去和他母亲告别,他说,妈,我走了。他妈坐在床上说,事情说的咋样?葛新说,他们都说我是假的。他妈头一点,口水从嘴角流出来了,他妈撩起被子擦擦嘴说,……拆的好,都拆了。