er efforts to
wriggle her huge bulk through the weakening lattice.

The girl, standing pale and rigid against the farther wall, sought with
ever-increasing terror for some loophole of escape. Suddenly her hand,
tight-pressed against her bosom, felt the hard outline of the revolver
that Clayton had left with her earlier in the day.

Quickly she snatched it from its hiding-place, and, leveling it full at
the lioness's face, pulled the trigger.

There was a flash of flame, the roar of the discharge, and an answering
roar of pain and anger from the beast.

Jane Porter saw the great form disappear from the window, and then she,
too, fainted, the revolver falling at her side.

But Sabor was not killed. The bullet had but inflicted a painful wound
in one of the great shoulders. It was the surprise at the blinding
flash and the deafening roar that had caused her hasty but temporary
retreat.

In another instant she was back at the lattice, and with renewed fury
was clawing at the aperture, but with lessened effect, since the
wounded member was almost useless.

She saw her prey--the two women--lying senseless upon the floor. There
was no longer any resistance to be overcome. Her meat lay before her,
and Sabor had only to worm her way through the lattice to claim it.

Slowly she forced her great bulk, inch by inch, through the opening.
Now her head was through, now one great forearm and shoulder.

Carefully she drew up the wounded member to insinuate it gently beyond
the tight pressing bars.

A moment more and both shoulders through, the long, sinuous body and
the narrow hips would glide quickly after.

It was on this sight that Jane Porter again opened her eyes.

Chapter XV

The Forest God

When Clayton heard the report of the firearm he fell into an agony of
fear and apprehension. He knew that one of the sailors might be the
author of it; but the fact that he had left the revolver with Jane,
together with the overwrought condition of his nerves, made him
morbidly positive that she was threatened with some great danger.
Perhaps even now she was attempting to defend herself against some
savage man or beast.

What were the thoughts of his strange captor or guide Clayton could
only vaguely conjecture; but that he had heard the shot, and was in
some manner affected by it was quite evident, for he quickened his pace
so appreciably that Clayton, stumbling blindly in his wake, was down a
dozen times in