With brief respites, during which
we could hear the labored breathing of the contestants, the battle
continued for the better part of an hour until the sounds of combat
grew gradually less and finally ceased entirely.
At Ajor's suggestion, made by signs and a few of the words we knew
in common, I moved the fire directly to the entrance to the cave
so that a beast would have to pass directly through the flames to
reach us, and then we sat and waited for the victor of the battle
to come and claim his reward; but though we sat for a long time
with our eyes glued to the opening, we saw no sign of any beast.
At last I signed to Ajor to lie down, for I knew that she must
have sleep, and I sat on guard until nearly morning, when the girl
awoke and insisted that I take some rest; nor would she be denied,
but dragged me down as she laughingly menaced me with her knife.
Chapter 3
When I awoke, it was daylight, and I found Ajor squatting before a
fine bed of coals roasting a large piece of antelope-meat. Believe
me, the sight of the new day and the delicious odor of the cooking
meat filled me with renewed happiness and hope that had been all
but expunged by the experience of the previous night; and perhaps
the slender figure of the bright-faced girl proved also a potent
restorative. She looked up and smiled at me, showing those perfect
teeth, and dimpling with evident happiness--the most adorable
picture that I had ever seen.
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