She pressed her cheek close to Tarzan's shoulder. Slowly she turned her head until her hot lips were pressed against his flesh. She loved him and would gladly have died for him; yet within an hour she had been ready to plunge9 a knife into his heart and might again within the coming hour.
A hapless priest seeking shelter in the jungle chanced to show himself to enraged10 Tantor. The great beast turned to one side, bore down upon the crooked11, little man, snuffed him out and then, diverted from his course, blundered away toward the south. In a few minutes even the noise of his trumpeting12 was lost in the distance.
Tarzan dropped to the ground and La slipped to her feet from his back. "Call your people together," said Tarzan.
"They will kill me," replied La.
"They will not kill you," contradicted the ape-man. "No one will kill you while Tarzan of the Apes is here. Call them and we will talk with them."
La raised her voice in a weird13, flutelike call that carried far into the jungle on every side. From near and far came answering shouts in the barking tones of the Oparian priests: "We come! We come!" Again and again, La repeated her summons until singly and in pairs the greater portion of her following approached and halted a short distance away from the High Priestess and her savior. They came with scowling14 brows and threatening mien15. When all had come Tarzan addressed them.
"Your La is safe," said the ape-man. "Had she slain16 me she would now herself be dead and many more of you; but she spared me that I might save her. Go your way with her back to Opar, and Tarzan will go his way into the jungle. Let there be peace always between Tarzan and La. What is your answer?"
The priests grumbled17 and shook their heads. They spoke18 together and La and Tarzan could see that they were not favorably inclined toward the proposition. They did not wish to take La back and they did wish to complete the sacrifice of Tarzan to the Flaming God. At last the ape-man became impatient.
"You will obey the commands of your queen," he said, "and go back to Opar with her or Tarzan of the Apes will call together the other creatures of the jungle and slay19 you all. La saved me that I might save you and her. I have served you better alive than I could have dead. If you are not all fools you will let me go my way in peace and you will return to Opar with La. I know not where the sacred knife is; but you can fashion another. Had I not taken it from La you would have slain me and now your god must be glad that I took it since I have saved his priestess from love-mad Tantor. Will you go back to Opar with La, promising20 that no harm shall befall her?"
The priests gathered together in a little knot arguing and discussing. They pounded upon their breasts with their fists; they raised their hands and eyes to their fiery21 god; they growled22 and barked among themselves until it became evident to Tarzan that one of their number was preventing the acceptance of his proposal. This was the High Priest whose heart was filled with jealous rage because La openly acknowledged her love for the stranger, when by the worldly customs of their cult23 she should have belonged to him. Seemingly there was to be no solution of the problem until another priest stepped forth24 and, raising his hand, addressed La.
"Cadj, the High Priest," he announced, "would sacrifice you both to the Flaming God; but all of us except Cadj would gladly return to Opar with our queen."
"You are many against one," spoke up Tarzan. "Why should you not have your will? Go your way with La to Opar and if Cadj interferes25 slay him."
The priests of Opar welcomed this suggestion with loud cries of approval. To them it appeared nothing short of divine inspiration. The influence of ages of unquestioning obedience26 to high priests had made it seem impossible to them to question his authority; but when they realized that they could force him to their will they were as happy as children with new toys.
They rushed forward and seized Cadj. They talked in loud menacing tones into his ear. They threatened him with bludgeon and knife until at last he acquiesced27 in their demands, though sullenly28, and then Tarzan stepped close before Cadj.
"Priest," he said, "La goes back to her temple under the protection of her priests and the threat of Tarzan of the Apes that whoever harms her shall die. Tarzan will go again to Opar before the next rains and if harm has befallen La, woe29 betide Cadj, the High Priest."
Sullenly Cadj promised not to harm his queen.
"Protect her," cried Tarzan to the other Oparians. "Protect her so that when Tarzan comes again he will find La there to greet him."
"La will be there to greet thee," exclaimed the High Priestess, "and La will wait, longing30, always longing, until you come again. Oh, tell me that you will come!"
"Who knows?" asked the ape-man as he swung quickly into the trees and raced off toward the east.
For a moment La stood looking after him, then her head drooped31, a sigh escaped her lips and like an old woman she took up the march toward distant Opar.
Through the trees raced Tarzan of the Apes until the darkness of night had settled upon the jungle, then he lay down and slept, with no thought beyond the morrow and with even La but the shadow of a memory within his consciousness.
But a few marches to the north Lady Greystoke looked forward to the day when her mighty32 lord and master should discover the crime of Achmet Zek, and be speeding to rescue and avenge33, and even as she pictured the coming of John Clayton, the object of her thoughts squatted34 almost naked, beside a fallen log, beneath which he was searching with grimy fingers for a chance beetle35 or a luscious36 grub.
Two days elapsed following the theft of the jewels before Tarzan gave them a thought. Then, as they chanced to enter his mind, he conceived a desire to play with them again, and, having nothing better to do than satisfy the first whim37 which possessed38 him, he rose and started across the plain from the forest in which he had spent the preceding day.
Though no mark showed where the gems39 had been buried, and though the spot resembled the balance of an unbroken stretch several miles in length, where the reeds terminated at the edge of the meadowland, yet the ape-man moved with unerring precision directly to the place where he had hid his treasure.
With his hunting knife he upturned the loose earth, beneath which the pouch40 should be; but, though he excavated41 to a greater distance than the depth of the original hole there was no sign of pouch or jewels. Tarzan's brow clouded as he discovered that he had been despoiled42. Little or no reasoning was required to convince him of the identity of the guilty party, and with the same celerity that had marked his decision to unearth43 the jewels, he set out upon the trail of the thief.
Though the spoor was two days old, and practically obliterated44 in many places, Tarzan followed it with comparative ease. A white man could not have followed it twenty paces twelve hours after it had been made, a black man would have lost it within the first mile; but Tarzan of the Apes had been forced in childhood to develop senses that an ordinary mortal scarce ever uses.
We may note the garlic and whisky on the breath of a fellow strap45 hanger46, or the cheap perfume emanating47 from the person of the wondrous48 lady sitting in front of us, and deplore49 the fact of our sensitive noses; but, as a matter of fact, we cannot smell at all, our olfactory50 organs are practically atrophied51, by comparison with the development of the sense among the beasts of the wild.
Where a foot is placed an effluvium remains52 for a considerable time. It is beyond the range of our sensibilities; but to a creature of the lower orders, especially to the hunters and the hunted, as interesting and ofttimes more lucid53 than is the printed page to us.
Nor was Tarzan dependent alone upon his sense of smell. Vision and hearing had been brought to a marvelous state of development by the necessities of his early life, where survival itself depended almost daily upon the exercise of the keenest vigilance and the constant use of all his faculties54.
And so he followed the old trail of the Belgian through the forest and toward the north; but because of the age of the trail he was constrained55 to a far from rapid progress. The man he followed was two days ahead of him when Tarzan took up the pursuit, and each day he gained upon the ape-man. The latter, however, felt not the slightest doubt as to the outcome. Some day he would overhaul56 his quarry57—he could bide58 his time in peace until that day dawned. Doggedly59 he followed the faint spoor, pausing by day only to kill and eat, and at night only to sleep and refresh himself.
Occasionally he passed parties of savage60 warriors61; but these he gave a wide berth62, for he was hunting with a purpose that was not to be distracted by the minor63 accidents of the trail.
These parties were of the collecting hordes64 of the Waziri and their allies which Basuli had scattered65 his messengers broadcast to summon. They were marching to a common rendezvous66 in preparation for an assault upon the stronghold of Achmet Zek; but to Tarzan they were enemies—he retained no conscious memory of any friendship for the black men.
It was night when he halted outside the palisaded village of the Arab raider. Perched in the branches of a great tree he gazed down upon the life within the enclosure. To this place had the spoor led him. His quarry must be within; but how was he to find him among so many huts? Tarzan, although cognizant of his mighty powers, realized also his limitations. He knew that he could not successfully cope with great numbers in open battle. He must resort to the stealth and trickery of the wild beast, if he were to succeed.
Sitting in the safety of his tree, munching67 upon the leg bone of Horta, the boar, Tarzan waited a favorable opportunity to enter the village. For awhile he gnawed68 at the bulging69, round ends of the large bone, splintering off small pieces between his strong jaws70, and sucking at the delicious marrow71 within; but all the time he cast repeated glances into the village. He saw white-robed figures, and half-naked blacks; but not once did he see one who resembled the stealer of the gems.
Patiently he waited until the streets were deserted72 by all save the sentries73 at the gates, then he dropped lightly to the ground, circled to the opposite side of the village and approached the palisade.
At his side hung a long, rawhide74 rope—a natural and more dependable evolution from the grass rope of his childhood. Loosening this, he spread the noose75 upon the ground behind him, and with a quick movement of his wrist tossed the coils over one of the sharpened projections76 of the summit of the palisade.
Drawing the noose taut77, he tested the solidity of its hold. Satisfied, the ape-man ran nimbly up the vertical78 wall, aided by the rope which he clutched in both hands. Once at the top it required but a moment to gather the dangling79 rope once more into its coils, make it fast again at his waist, take a quick glance downward within the palisade, and, assured that no one lurked80 directly beneath him, drop softly to the ground.
Now he was within the village. Before him stretched a series of tents and native huts. The business of exploring each of them would be fraught81 with danger; but danger was only a natural factor of each day's life—it never appalled82 Tarzan. The chances appealed to him—the chances of life and death, with his prowess and his faculties pitted against those of a worthy83 antagonist84.
It was not necessary that he enter each habitation—through a door, a window or an open chink, his nose told him whether or not his prey85 lay within. For some time he found one disappointment following upon the heels of another in quick succession. No spoor of the Belgian was discernible. But at last he came to a tent where the smell of the thief was strong. Tarzan listened, his ear close to the canvas at the rear, but no sound came from within.
At last he cut one of the pin ropes, raised the bottom of the canvas, and intruded86 his head within the interior. All was quiet and dark. Tarzan crawled cautiously within—the scent87 of the Belgian was strong; but it was not live scent. Even before he had examined the interior minutely, Tarzan knew that no one was within it.
In one corner he found a pile of blankets and clothing scattered about; but no pouch of pretty pebbles88. A careful examination of the balance of the tent revealed nothing more, at least nothing to indicate the presence of the jewels; but at the side where the blankets and clothing lay, the ape-man discovered that the tent wall had been loosened at the bottom, and presently he sensed that the Belgian had recently passed out of the tent by this avenue.
Tarzan was not long in following the way that his prey had fled. The spoor led always in the shadow and at the rear of the huts and tents of the village—it was quite evident to Tarzan that the Belgian had gone alone and secretly upon his mission. Evidently he feared the inhabitants of the village, or at least his work had been of such a nature that he dared not risk detection.
At the back of a native hut the spoor led through a small hole recently cut in the brush wall and into the dark interior beyond. Fearlessly, Tarzan followed the trail. On hands and knees, he crawled through the small aperture89. Within the hut his nostrils90 were assailed91 by many odors; but clear and distinct among them was one that half aroused a latent memory of the past—it was the faint and delicate odor of a woman. With the cognizance of it there rose in the breast of the ape-man a strange uneasiness—the result of an irresistible92 force which he was destined93 to become acquainted with anew—the instinct which draws the male to his mate.
In the same hut was the scent spoor of the Belgian, too, and as both these assailed the nostrils of the ape-man, mingling94 one with the other, a jealous rage leaped and burned within him, though his memory held before the mirror of recollection no image of the she to which he had attached his desire.
Like the tent he had investigated, the hut, too, was empty, and after satisfying himself that his stolen pouch was secreted95 nowhere within, he left, as he had entered, by the hole in the rear wall.
Here he took up the spoor of the Belgian, followed it across the clearing, over the palisade, and out into the dark jungle beyond.
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1
perilous
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| adj.危险的，冒险的 | |
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agility
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| n.敏捷，活泼 | |
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lashes
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| n.鞭挞( lash的名词复数 )；鞭子；突然猛烈的一击；急速挥动v.鞭打( lash的第三人称单数 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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compassion
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| n.同情，怜悯 | |
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jealousy
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| n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌 | |
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sobbing
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| <主方>Ⅰ adj.湿透的 | |
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maiden
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| n.少女，处女；adj.未婚的，纯洁的，无经验的 | |
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virgin
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| n.处女，未婚女子；adj.未经使用的；未经开发的 | |
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plunge
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| v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲 | |
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enraged
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| 使暴怒( enrage的过去式和过去分词 )； 歜； 激愤 | |
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crooked
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| adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的 | |
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trumpeting
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| 大声说出或宣告（trumpet的现在分词形式） | |
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weird
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| adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的 | |
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scowling
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| 怒视，生气地皱眉( scowl的现在分词 ) | |
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mien
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| n.风采；态度 | |
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slain
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| 杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词) | |
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grumbled
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| 抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 发牢骚； 咕哝； 发哼声 | |
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spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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slay
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| v.杀死，宰杀，杀戮 | |
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promising
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| adj.有希望的，有前途的 | |
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fiery
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| adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的 | |
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growled
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| v.（动物）发狺狺声， （雷）作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 )；低声咆哮着说 | |
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cult
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| n.异教，邪教；时尚，狂热的崇拜 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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interferes
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| vi. 妨碍，冲突，干涉 | |
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obedience
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| n.服从，顺从 | |
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acquiesced
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| v.默认，默许( acquiesce的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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sullenly
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| 不高兴地，绷着脸，忧郁地 | |
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woe
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| n.悲哀，苦痛，不幸，困难；int.用来表达悲伤或惊慌 | |
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longing
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| n.（for）渴望 | |
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drooped
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| 弯曲或下垂，发蔫( droop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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avenge
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| v.为...复仇，为...报仇 | |
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squatted
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| v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的过去式和过去分词 )；非法擅自占用（土地或房屋）；为获得其所有权；而占用某片公共用地。 | |
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beetle
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| n.甲虫，近视眼的人 | |
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luscious
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| adj.美味的；芬芳的；肉感的，引与性欲的 | |
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whim
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| n.一时的兴致，突然的念头；奇想，幻想 | |
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possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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gems
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| growth； economy； management； and customer satisfaction 增长 | |
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pouch
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| n.小袋，小包，囊状袋；vt.装...入袋中，用袋运输；vi.用袋送信件 | |
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excavated
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| v.挖掘( excavate的过去式和过去分词 )；开凿；挖出；发掘 | |
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despoiled
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| v.掠夺，抢劫( despoil的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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unearth
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| v.发掘，掘出，从洞中赶出 | |
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obliterated
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| v.除去( obliterate的过去式和过去分词 )；涂去；擦掉；彻底破坏或毁灭 | |
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strap
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| n.皮带，带子；v.用带扣住，束牢；用绷带包扎 | |
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hanger
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| n.吊架，吊轴承；挂钩 | |
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emanating
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| v.从…处传出，传出( emanate的现在分词 )；产生，表现，显示 | |
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wondrous
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| adj.令人惊奇的，奇妙的；adv.惊人地；异乎寻常地；令人惊叹地 | |
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deplore
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| vt.哀叹，对...深感遗憾 | |
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50
olfactory
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| adj.嗅觉的 | |
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51
atrophied
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| adj.萎缩的，衰退的v.（使）萎缩，（使）虚脱，（使）衰退( atrophy的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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lucid
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| adj.明白易懂的，清晰的，头脑清楚的 | |
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54
faculties
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| n.能力( faculty的名词复数 )；全体教职员；技巧；院 | |
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constrained
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| adj.束缚的,节制的 | |
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56
overhaul
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| v./n.大修，仔细检查 | |
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quarry
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| n.采石场；v.采石；费力地找 | |
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bide
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| v.忍耐；等候；住 | |
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doggedly
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| adv.顽强地，固执地 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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warriors
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| 武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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berth
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| n.卧铺，停泊地，锚位；v.使停泊 | |
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minor
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| adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修 | |
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hordes
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| n.移动着的一大群( horde的名词复数 )；部落 | |
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scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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rendezvous
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| n.约会，约会地点，汇合点；vi.汇合，集合；vt.使汇合，使在汇合地点相遇 | |
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munching
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| v.用力咀嚼（某物），大嚼( munch的现在分词 ) | |
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gnawed
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| 咬( gnaw的过去式和过去分词 )； （长时间） 折磨某人； （使）苦恼； （长时间）危害某事物 | |
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bulging
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| 膨胀； 凸出（部）； 打气； 折皱 | |
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jaws
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| n.口部；嘴 | |
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marrow
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| n.骨髓；精华；活力 | |
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deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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sentries
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| 哨兵，步兵( sentry的名词复数 ) | |
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74
rawhide
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| n.生牛皮 | |
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noose
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| n.绳套，绞索（刑）；v.用套索捉；使落入圈套；处以绞刑 | |
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projections
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| 预测( projection的名词复数 )； 投影； 投掷； 突起物 | |
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taut
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| adj.拉紧的，绷紧的，紧张的 | |
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vertical
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| adj.垂直的，顶点的，纵向的；n.垂直物，垂直的位置 | |
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79
dangling
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| 悬吊着( dangle的现在分词 )； 摆动不定； 用某事物诱惑…； 吊胃口 | |
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80
lurked
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| vi.潜伏，埋伏（lurk的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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81
fraught
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| adj.充满…的，伴有(危险等)的；忧虑的 | |
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82
appalled
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| v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的 | |
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83
worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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84
antagonist
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| n.敌人，对抗者，对手 | |
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85
prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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86
intruded
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| n.侵入的，推进的v.侵入，侵扰，打扰( intrude的过去式和过去分词 )；把…强加于 | |
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87
scent
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| n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉 | |
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88
pebbles
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| [复数]鹅卵石； 沙砾； 卵石，小圆石( pebble的名词复数 ) | |
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89
aperture
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| n.孔，隙，窄的缺口 | |
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90
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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91
assailed
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| v.攻击( assail的过去式和过去分词 )；困扰；质问；毅然应对 | |
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92
irresistible
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| adj.非常诱人的，无法拒绝的，无法抗拒的 | |
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93
destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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94
mingling
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| adj.混合的 | |
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95
secreted
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| v.（尤指动物或植物器官）分泌( secrete的过去式和过去分词 )；隐匿，隐藏 | |
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