CHAPTER SEVENTEEN.
WHERE THE BOYS WERE.
"Doesn't matter out here, doesn't it?" said Ned. "Well, I tell you whatit is. I shall talk to uncle about it, and he'll speak to the doctor,and tell him it would be disgraceful."
"Don't talk so loudly; those fellows are close behind."
"But they can't talk English."
"No; but some of them have heard so much that I often think theyunderstand a little of what is said."
"I don't see any one about."
"Perhaps not, but they're following us all the same, and if you were tomake a rush off now, very likely you'd run up against one of them, readyto stop you. But I don't know," continued Frank, looking stealthilyabout; "I've got regular cat's eyes now, with going to the jungle edgeof a night to set and watch traps with the men. I don't see any oneabout. What do you say to a walk down to the jetty?"
"What for?"
"To hear the crocodiles at play. They have fine games there of a night,splashing and chasing one another."
"Oh no. I'm too tired, really."
"You are a chap! Why, we might take one of the boats and have a row.Go off to one of the prahus, and startle the beggars. No, that wouldn'tdo, because they might throw spears at us."
"But they couldn't hit us if they did."
"Couldn't they! You don't know. They throw them splendidly. Why, Iknow fellows here who could hit you with a spear every time at thirtyyards, and send the thing right through you."
"Ugh!" ejaculated Ned, with a shudder. "Come along, and we'll get Hametto give us some coffee."
"And bring us pipes. I say, let's try and smoke."
"Nonsense!"
"Well then, let's go down to the jetty. You can see the fireflies downby the river-side. They look wonderful on the other bank."
"Then let the monkeys and crocodiles look at them. I don't want to lookat anything. I'm so tired."
"Then sit in a sampan, and I'll row you about among the crocs."
"I'm not going to sit in Sam's pan or anybody else's pan," cried Ned."I want to lie down and rest. That elephant has shaken me all topieces, and I'm so sore; I'm just as if I had been caned all over."
"Perhaps you have," said Frank, laughingly. "Your uncle has been givingit to you. I say though, seriously, I'll ask the rajah to give you aset of native togs. You'd find them so cool and comfortable."
"And look just such a guy as you do."
"You want me to punch your head, Ned. Guy, indeed!"
"Do. Try."
"Not I. Ill-tempered beggar, that's what you are. I say, there are noguards watching us. Let's go and have a game somewhere."
"Yes, a game at coffee and cushions," said Ned. "Here we are.--I say,Hamet, can you give us some coffee, quick?"
The Malay was busy arranging the rifle and guns which had been used thatday, and he nodded; but, instead of hurrying to prepare the meal, helaid his hand on Ned's arm.
"Something wrong?" he said. "Trouble?"
"Oh, I don't know," replied Ned, carelessly; "nothing much. Why do youask?"
"Hamet think so," he said, his peculiar pronunciation sounding strange."The master want to go away back down the river?"
"Eh? Yes, but we can't. They have taken the boat and the men."
"Yes; but Hamet knows where now. Always been try to find boat and men."
"But you couldn't find them. My uncle can't, and you don't know, doyou, Frank?"
"No; they took them all right away somewhere. But never mind aboutthem. You can have the rajah's boats when you like, and you don't wantto go away."
"How do you know?" replied Ned, thoughtfully. "We might want to goperhaps all in a hurry, and it would be handy to know where our own boatand men are."
"Oh, bother! Don't be shabby, and talk about going. We've had no funat all hardly yet. Where's that coffee?"
"But it would be handy to know where the boat is kept in case of therebeing trouble; and I know my uncle has been annoyed at its being sohidden away."
"Yes; the master angry," assented Hamet. "My boat--my men."
"And you know where it is?" said Frank.
"Yes; one of my men came and told me to-night. They all want to go backhome, and they are kept at work."
"Yes!" exclaimed Ned, "we ought to know."
"Very well then," cried Frank, rather ill-humouredly; "he knows wherethe boat is, and when you've done collecting, and we've had no end moretrips, you can get your things onboard again, and go."
"But we ought to know too," said Ned, "in case of there being trouble.We might want to go in a hurry."
"Yes; that's right," grumbled Frank. "Well, you are shabby. I haven'thad a companion for years now; and as soon as I've got one, you want totake him away."
"But you used to do without one before I came."
"Yes; but then I hadn't had one. I say, never mind about all that.Settle down here till we all go. Perhaps we shall some day."
"Hamet show the young master where the boat is?"
"Yes," said Ned eagerly; and he forgot his weariness in the desire toknow that which had been concealed from him.
"Why, I thought you were too tired to stir," cried Frank.
"I wanted you to go down to the river to a boat, and you were gruff andwouldn't come."
"Hamet did not say down by the river."
"Where do you suppose it is, then?" cried Frank, laughing; "up in atree?"
"Yes; down the river. Hamet knows."
"Let's go and see where it is, Frank," said Ned eagerly.
"What for? I'm too tired now."
"Suppose you and your father wanted to go too."
"We should have a naga and plenty of the rajah's men."
"No, you would not. He would not let you go."
"No more he would," said Frank, thoughtfully. "All right then, if youreally mean to go, I'll come. I can guess where it is, though, and itwill not be a very nice walk."
"Not far. Soon go," said Hamet. "Then the master know if he wantboat."
"Are the men in it?" said Ned.
"No. All on board big prahu."
"Let's go and see, Frank."
"Very well, but you mean `feel.' Why not wait till morning?"
"No can go then," said Hamet, quickly.
"Very good reason," said Frank, as thoughtful now as his companion."Yes, we might as well know. My father has often said he wished we hada boat of our own that we could use if we wanted to go away in a hurry,because the rajah had gone in a mad fit."
"Young masters come?"
"Yes. Go on and we'll follow," said Frank; "but look out for thecrocs."
Hamet gave them a keen look, held up his hand, and threw himself down,crawled to the doorway, and out on to the veranda.
"Looking out for squalls," said Frank, laughingly.
In a minute Hamet was back.
"Can't see men. All dark. No one. No speak. Keep close to Hamet."
"Yes; we'll follow," said Ned, and after lowering the lamp a little byputting the wick back amongst the oil, they crept out on to the veranda,where all listened for a time and tried to pierce the darkness.
It was very quiet. Only a cry from the jungle, and a faint splash fromthe river; and descending quickly, Hamet took about a dozen paces at arun, and then stopped for the boys to overtake him.
"No one. No spears," he whispered, evidently fully convinced that hissharp run would have in some way brought him in contact with the guardif they had been there.
Then, going off quickly in the direction of the jetty, he turned offwhen about half-way there, and led his young companions in and out amongthe houses, and after passing them, away along the edge of therice-fields that skirted the village, the boys following in perfectsilence for about a quarter of an hour, when Frank whispered: "He'sgoing wrong, right away from the river."
"Hist!" whispered Hamet, and he went on again for another ten minutes,before Frank tried to speak again.
"It's all right," he
said. "I know: it isn't where I thought. There'sa creek runs right up ever so far among the rice-fields. I never wentthere, but that's where he is going."
"Hist!" whispered Hamet.
"Oh bother! You need not be so particular now. We're right away fromall the houses. Nobody would be down here.--I say, Ned, how do you likeyour walk?"
"It's very dark and awkward," said Ned; "but I don't mind. I shouldlike to be able to tell uncle where the boat is."
They had now reached a part where trees were growing pretty thickly, andit was only by keeping close to their guide that they were able to maketheir way onward; but this confusing part of their journey was soonover, for Hamet suddenly stood fast as if puzzled, and uttered a word ortwo in a tone full of vexation.
"He can't find it after all," cried Frank. "Oh, what a bother, to dragus all this way for nothing."
"Hah!" ejaculated the Malay, and catching Ned's hand, he drew himthrough the trees at right angles to their former course, and againsuddenly stopped.
"Well, which way now?" asked Ned. "Can't you find it?"
"The boat--the boat!" whispered Hamet, and drawing Ned's arm out to fulllength, he made him stoop a little in the black darkness, with theresult that the boy's hand rustled among the leaves of the attapcovering.
"It's here, Frank," he said excitedly, and pressing down now with bothhands, he felt the boat yield and then stop.
"Yes, that's a boat, sure enough," said Frank, who now felt about thetop of the awning. "Yes, and I can feel the poles and oars. Why, thisis quite a narrow ditch, only just wide enough to hold it. I've gothold of a rope, too. It's tied up to a cocoa-nut palm; I know the thingby the feel."
"Yes; the boat," whispered Hamet.
"All right. Then now you know where your own boat is, Ned, and when youare tired of us all, you can jump in and say `Good-bye.'"
"Or take you with us," said Ned. "I don't want to go away from you.Not so ungrateful as you think. Oh, don't! You needn't hug me likethat. I say: don't act like a great girl. Ah, Ham--"
Then silence. For Ned felt, as he believed, his companion fling hisarms affectionately about him, and so roughly that he bore him back. Hefelt the silken baju and sarong and the hilt of the kris against him,and then he went down heavily. Frank was evidently playing him somefoolish trick, and he had clapped a hand now over his mouth to keep himfrom making a noise, and betraying their whereabouts.
Then a horrible pang of fear ran through him, for there were smotheredsounds and scuffling going on close by, leaves cracked and stalks andtwigs snapped, and directly after the hand was removed, and he openedhis mouth to cry out, but something soft was thrust in, then a cloth wasdragged over his head, his arms were bound to his body, and he felthimself lifted up, and carried by a couple of men.
"A piece of treachery," he thought. "And we trusted Hamet so. PoorFrank! Is he being served the same?"
He got as far as that point, and then the heat and the oppression causedby the gag so nearly stifled him that his brain grew confused; there wasa sensation of giddiness and a singing in his ears.
"They are choking me," he thought; and he made a desperate struggle toget his hands to his lips, and then he remembered no more till he felt asensation of something cool being trickled between his lips. It tastedbitter but pleasant, and in his half-insensible state he swallowed thegrateful beverage, and swallowed again and again.
Then forgetfulness stole over him once, and he knew no more, till heopened his eyes and saw the level rays of the sun shining through theopen doorway on to the mats that formed the side of the room.
"Going to get up, uncle?" he said, and then he stared, for a couple ofdark faces were thrust in to stare at him, and as he looked quicklyround, he could not see the guns on the walls, nor his uncle's specimenshanging out of reach of the ants, nor yet his uncle; but close besidehim, lying on a mat, the figure of Frank, evidently fast asleep.
The two swarthy-looking faces were withdrawn slowly, and Ned turned,seized Frank by the shoulder, and shook him violently.
"Don't, father!" was the result, as Frank spoke, without unclosing hiseyes. "Let me lie a bit longer. My head is so bad."
"Frank, old chap, wake up. Where are we? What does it all mean?"
The boy opened his eyes and sat up, stared round, rubbed himself, andthen gazed at his companion.
"I--what does it mean? I--what--I remember now. Some one jumped on meand stuffed something into my mouth. I thought it was you then. It wasthat Hamet. What does he mean? Here, we're not tied now; let's get outof this. I say, where's my kris?"
He sprang up, and Ned followed his example, both making for the doorway,but only to be confronted directly by four spearmen, who effectuallybarred the way.
"Eh," said Frank, thoughtfully, "that's it, is it? 'Tisn't one ofHamet's games. Here you," he continued, speaking now in Malay; "whatdoes all this mean? Why are we brought here?"
One of the men answered respectfully enough, and Frank turned from thedoor to face his companion.
"Those are the rajah's chaps, and that fellow says we are to stay here.I know: they thought we were going to cut off in that boat. Here you,where's Hamet?"
The man addressed looked at him half smilingly, but made no reply.
"He won't speak," said Frank, impatiently. "It's no good to try. Youmight as well ask questions of a cocoa-nut. I hope they haven't givenhim the kris. Here, you: tell me this--Hamet--has he had the kris?"
This too in Malay, and the man addressed smiled now, but he would notanswer, and Frank gave it up.
"I don't think they've killed him, or they wouldn't look so civil.Perhaps they've only shut him up like us. Well, I'm glad we went to seewhere the boat was."
"Oh, I say, don't reproach me!" cried Ned. "I did all for the best.Then we've been sleeping here all night. I never knew."
"Not you. They gave us some stuff, I know."
"But my uncle! He'll think I'm lost, or gone into the river, orsomething. What will he say?"
"Oh, bother your uncle!" cried Frank, petulantly. "I'm thinking aboutmy poor old dad."