he king baboon and led the whole angry horde
of hairy devils upon him and Jenssen. Malbihn cowered still lower.

"Where is the girl?" demanded Korak, in English.

"What girl?" asked Malbihn. "There is no girl here--only the women of
my boys. Is it one of them you want?"

"The white girl," replied Korak. "Do not lie to me--you lured her from
her friends. You have her. Where is she?"

"It was not I," cried Malbihn. "It was an Englishman who hired me to
steal her. He wished to take her to London with him. She was willing
to go. His name is Baynes. Go to him, if you want to know where the
girl is."

"I have just come from him," said Korak. "He sent me to you. The girl
is not with him. Now stop your lying and tell me the truth. Where is
she?" Korak took a threatening step toward the Swede.

Malbihn shrank from the anger in the other's face.

"I will tell you," he cried. "Do not harm me and I will tell you all
that I know. I had the girl here; but it was Baynes who persuaded her
to leave her friends--he had promised to marry her. He does not know
who she is; but I do, and I know that there is a great reward for
whoever takes her back to her people. It was the only reward I wanted.
But she escaped and crossed the river in one of my canoes. I followed
her, but The Sheik was there, God knows how, and he captured her and
attacked me and drove me back. Then came Baynes, angry because he had
lost the girl, and shot me. If you want her, go to The Sheik and ask
him for her--she has passed as his daughter since childhood."

"She is not The Sheik's daughter?" asked Korak.

"She is not," replied Malbihn.

"Who is she then?" asked Korak.

Here Malbihn saw his chance. Possibly he could make use of his
knowledge after all--it might even buy back his life for him. He was
not so credulous as to believe that this savage ape-man would have any
compunctions about slaying him.

"When you find her I will tell you," he said, "if you will promise to
spare my life and divide the reward with me. If you kill me you will
never know, for only The Sheik knows and he will never tell. The girl
herself is ignorant of her origin."

"If you have told me the truth I will spare you," said Korak. "I shall
go now to The Sheik's village and if the girl is not there I shall
return and slay you. As for the other information you have, if the
girl wants it when we have found her we will find a way to purchase it
from you."