| 55 | 56 | 57 | 58 | 59 |
| 1 | 23 | 47 | 70 | 93 |
|
www.freeclassicebooks.com
Releasing my hold upon the ivy, I dropped the remaining distance to the ground,
saved from laceration only because the lion's paw struck the thick stem of ivy.
The creature was making a frightful racket now, leaping back and forth from the
floor at the broad window ledge, tearing at the masonry with his claws in vain
attempts to reach me. But the opening was too narrow, and the masonry too
solid.
Victory had commenced the descent, but I called to her to stop just above the
window, and, as the lion reappeared, growling and snarling, I put a .33 bullet in
his face, and at the same moment Victory slipped quickly past him, dropping into
my upraised arms that were awaiting her.
The roaring of the beasts that had discovered us, together with the report of my
rifle, had set the balance of the fierce inmates of the palace into the most frightful
uproar I have ever heard.
I feared that it would not be long before intelligence or instinct would draw them
from the interiors and set them upon our trail, the river. Nor had we much more
than reached it when a lion bounded around the corner of the edifice we had just
quitted and stood looking about as though in search of us.
Following, came others, while Victory and I crouched in hiding behind a clump of
bushes close to the bank of the river. The beasts sniffed about the ground for a
while, but they did not chance to go near the spot where we had stood beneath
the window that had given us escape.
Presently a black-maned male raised his head, and, with cocked ears and glaring
eyes, gazed straight at the bush behind which we lay. I could have sworn that he
had discovered us, and when he took a few short and stately steps in our
direction I raised my rifle and covered him. But, after a long, tense moment he
looked away, and turned to glare in another direction.
I breathed a sigh of relief, and so did Victory. I could feel her body quiver as she
lay pressed close to me, our cheeks almost touching as we both peered through
the same small opening in the foliage.
I turned to give her a reassuring smile as the lion indicated that he had not seen
us, and as I did so she, too, turned her face toward mine, for the same purpose,
doubtless. Anyway, as our heads turned simultaneously, our lips brushed
together. A startled expression came into Victory's eyes as she drew back in
evident confusion.
5
7
Page
Quick Jump
|