The warmth of her hand gave Heyst a strange, intimate
sensation of all her person. He had to fight down a new sort of emotion,
which almost unmanned him. He went on, whispering sternly:
"But if you see no such signals, don't let anything--fear, curiosity,
despair, or hope--entice you back to this house; and with the first sign
of dawn steal away along the edge of the clearing till you strike the
path. Wait no longer, because I shall probably be dead."
The murmur of the word "Never!" floated into his ear as if it formed
itself in the air.
"You know the path," he continued. "Make your way to the barricade. Go
to Wang--yes, to Wang. Let nothing stop you!" It seemed to him that the
girl's hand trembled a little. "The worst he can do to you is to shoot
you, but he won't. I really think he won't, if I am not there. Stay with
the villagers, with the wild people, and fear nothing. They will be more
awed by you than you can be frightened of them. Davidson's bound to turn
up before very long. Keep a look-out for a passing steamer. Think of
some sort of signal to call him."
She made no answer. The sense of the heavy, brooding silence in the
outside world seemed to enter and fill the room--the oppressive infinity
of it, without breath, without light. It was as if the heart of hearts
had ceased to beat and the end of all things had come.
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