she thought, that
would interest itself in her. He mistrusted Kerissen; he would
suspect.

So hope rose high in her, and hopeful, too, was this new glimpse of
freedom. Somewhere, soon, she thought confidently, the chance to
escape would come. The old woman could not watch forever. The big
eunuch was occupied with the boat. She could hear him now muttering
angrily to the little brown boy at the engines, while over the sound
of his muttering rose the rhythmic, unconcerned chant of two other
boys marching up and down the narrow passageways of deck outside the
little staterooms with a scrubbing brush under each left foot.
"_Allah Illeh Lessah_," they chanted monotonously, with a scrub of
the brush at each emphasis. "_Allah Illeh Lessah_."

"Allah help _me_," thought Arlee Beecher.

All day Sunday she had sat there in that chair watching the
pyramids, at first so sharp-cut against the cloudless blue, wane
imperceptibly and fade from sight, watching the golden Mokattan
Hills and the pearly tinted Tura range slip softly from the horizon
and all the old landmarks of the Egypt that she knew disappear and
be replaced by strange, new sights. Other pyramids showed like
child's toys upon the horizon; dense groves of palm trees appeared
along the banks, then the banks grew higher and higher and upon
them, silhouetted against the bright blue sky, showed a frieze-like
procession of country folk driving camels or donkeys or bullocks.

All night long they had steamed, a search-light on the bow, and
Arlee had lain in the little stateroom trying to sleep, but
continually aware of the breathing of the old woman huddled outside
against her door, of the soft thudding of bare feet about the deck,
of the pulse of the engine, beating, beating steadily, and of quick,
muffled commands, of reversals, grinding of chains as some
treacherous shallow appeared ahead, then of the onward drive and the
steady rhythmic progress again.

Where were they taking her? South to some haunt where she would be
farther than ever from the civilization which had flowed so
unheedingly past that old palace of darkened windows, south toward
the strange native cities and tiny villages and the grain fields
and the deserts. But it was all better than that stifling palace and
the absence of the Captain gave her a sense of temporary security.

Sunday had been hot and dry, but this Monday was cooler and the
north wind, blowing freshly over the wide Nile, broke the
amb