At the first light of dawn Hendrik crept humbly into the hut to wakehis master, and within half an hour they were across the Vaal and on theroad to Wakkerstroom.
As the light increased so did Muller's spirits rise, till at last, whenthe red sun came up in glory and swept away the shadows, he felt asthough all the load of guilt and fear that lay upon his heart haddeparted with them. He could see now that the death of the two Boers bylightning was a mere accident--a happy accident, indeed; for, had it notso chanced, he would have been forced to kill them himself, if he couldnot have obtained possession of the warrant by other means. As it was,he had forgotten about this document; but it did not matter much, hereflected. Nobody would be likely to find the bodies of the two men andhorses under that lonely bank. Certainly they would not be found beforethe _aasvogels_ had picked them clean, and these would be at work uponthem now. And if they were found, the paper would have rotted orbeen blown away, or, at the worst, rendered so discoloured as to beunreadable. For the rest, there was nothing to connect him with themurder, now that his confederates were dead. Hendrik would prove analibi for him. He was a useful man, Hendrik. Besides, who would believethat it was a murder? Two men were escorting an Englishman to the river;they became involved in a quarrel; the Englishman shot them, and theyshot the Englishman and his companion. Then the horses plunged into theVaal upsetting the cart, and there was an end of it. He could seenow how well things had gone for him. Events had placed him beyondsuspicion.
Then he fell to thinking of the fruits of his honest labours, andMuller's cheek grew warm with the mounting blood, and his eyes flashedwith the fire of youth. In two days--forty-eight hours--at the outside,Bessie would be in his arms. He could not miscarry now, for was he notin absolute command? Besides, Hendrik had read it in his omens longago.[*] Mooifontein should be stormed on the morrow, if that werenecessary, and _Oom_ Silas Croft and Bessie should be taken prisoners;and then he knew how to deal with them. His talk about shooting on theprevious night had been no idle threat. She should yield herself to him,or the old man must die, and then he would take her. There could be nolegal consequences now that the British Government was in the act ofsurrender. It would be a meritorious deed to execute a rebel Englishman.
[*] It is not a very rare thing to meet white men in South Africa who believe more or less in the efficacy of native witchcraft, and, although such a proceeding is forbidden by law, who at a pinch will not hesitate to consult the witch-doctors.--Author.
Yes, it was all plain sailing now. How long had it needed to winher--three years? He had loved her for three years. Well, he would havehis reward; and then, his passion satisfied, he would turn his mind tothose far-reaching, ambitious schemes, whereof the end was somethinglike a throne.