Suddenly there was a clamour of voices, cries, the clang of swords, the
sharp crash of a shot, and the two jamadars, startled, eyes staring,
stood with ears cocked toward the tumult.

"Soldiers!" Sookdee gasped. His hand brushed Hunsa's bare arm as he
thrust it into the chest and brought it forth clasping jewels, which he
tied in a knot of his waistcloth. "Take you something, Hunsa, and lock
the box till we see," he said darting from the tent.

Hunsa filled a pocket of his brocaded Jacket, but he was looking for
the Akbar Lamp, the ruby. He lifted out a tray and ran his grimy hands
through the maze of gold and silver wrought ornaments below. His
fingers touched, at the very bottom, a bag of leather. He tore it
open, and a blaze of blood-red light glinted at him evilly where a ruby
caught the flame of the torch that Sookdee had thrown to the earth
floor as he fled.

With a snarl of gloating he rolled the ruby in a fold of his turban,
locked the box, and darted after Sookdee.

He all but fell over the seven dead bodies of the merchant and his men
as he raced to where a group was standing beyond. And there three more
bodies lay upon the ground, and beside them, held, were two horses.

"It is Ajeet Singh," Sookdee said pointing to where the Chief lay with
his head in the lap of a decoit. "These two native soldiers of the
English came riding in with swiftness, for behind them raced Ajeet who
must have seen them pass."

"And here," another added, "as the riders checked at sight of the dead,
Ajeet pulled one from his horse and killed him, but the other, with a
pistol, shot Ajeet and he is dead."

"The Chief is not dead," said the one who held his head in his lap; "he
is but shot in the shoulder, and I have stopped the blood with my hand."

"And we have killed the other soldier," another said, "for, having seen
the bodies, we could not let him live."

From Sookdee's hand dangled a coat of one of the dead.

"This that is a leather purse," he said, "contains letters; the red
thing on them I have looked upon before--it is the seal of the Englay.
It was here in the coat of that one who is a sergeant--the other being
a soldier."

He put the leather case within the bosom of his shirt, adding: "This
may even be of value to the Dewan. Beyond that, there was little of
loot upon these dogs of the Englay--eight rupees. The coats and the
turbans we will burn."

Hunsa stooped down and slipped the sandals from the fe