Adventure, July 1, 1928 — page 166: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

160 for support as if to prevent herself from failing, full in the tropic sunlight, stood Madame Scala. The brilliant sunshine framed her slender figure as in gold. In a way, this was an apotheosis of the woman hehad last seen on board the Chauve-Sourts, when he had looked up at her from the well-deck. Her face was drawn and haggard, even smeared with blood, which had dried upon the powder on her cheeks. lips were drawn back as if she suffered pain. The thin silk pajama suit that she was wearing had been torn by thorns in a dozen places, and her flimsy shoes were cut to ribbons. She looked half savage, half martyr; and yet she had lost little of her beauty. There was a wild expression in her eyes, hike that of a hunted thing. It was evi- dent that she was so exhausted and so weak that it was as much as she could do to stand. As with a great effort, she dragged her- self up the few remaining steps. Recog- nizing Eade, she came forward, tottering, with both hands stretched out in front of her. And what struck John Eade as the most incongruous thing about her was a gold wrist-watch studded with diamonds. “You! Here!” she exclaimed. “Oh, teil me—Charles, he is safe?” “So faras I know,” said Eade. “But you! Madame, you must lie down and rest.” He had moved toward her, when she drew back a step, and passed a hand across her eyes. “And Liu Tang has not come?” she asked. “Not so far as we know,” said the American. “The bon Diew be praised! Monsieur, I was asleep—you remember where you left me, on the deck. I woke up with a start. I do not know why. I saw the face of Liu Tang—that devil’s face—quite close to me—in the moonlight. I think I shrieked; and then he fled. It took mea moment to recover myself. I heard him trying to force his way into Quental’s cabin. I saw him struggling to open the door. But when I came upon the main Her scarlet — CHARLES GILSON deck, he saw me and threw the knife through the cabin porthole. Is Quental dead?” she asked, suddenly breaking off. “No,” said Eade. _ “He missed—by the fraction of an inch. She gave a sigh of relief, and went on with her story. “Liu Tang sprang overboard into the jungle like a wildcat. I knew what he meant to do—to come here, to kill Charles. And I know, too, from whom he got his orders.” “And you went in pursuit of him!” Eade exclaimed. ‘Madame, you were mad!” She leaned for support against the back of the chair in which John Eade had spent the greater part of the morning. ““Yes, monsieur, I was mad, desperate,” she said. “TI did not care what happened tome; I did not wait to think. I tried to jump ashore, but one foot went into the water, into the mud. I had my electric torch in my right hand. I switched it on and saw where I was. I caught hold ofa bough of a tree, pulled myself out of the water and hurried after Liu Tang. Fora few minutes I could hear him in front of me, breaking his way through the jungle. But soon after I had come to a narrow path, [losthim. He is strong, that man— he is like a leopard.” She paused, as if she wanted breath, and then tried to draw her silken shreds of clothing closer about her stooping, sylph-like body. Eade’s feelings toward her were a mixture of bewilderment, pity and admiration. His own fears and troubles were forgotten. “You must rest, madame!” he insisted. “You might have killed yourself!” “A moment. I must tell you all,” she went on. ‘Mile upon mile, hour after hour! Oh, my good friend, the never ending jungle, it is awful! I did not know where I was going. I just followed the path, and went on, and on, and on. My torch went out; but when daylight came I could see better. And then I met a Malay who told me the way to Nolak. From the way he looked at me, I could see that he thought I was mad, and comicloooks.com