"By Jove," muttered Mokesuep, after having watched her for awhile, "by Jove, what a pretty girl! All the better for me--I shall have a charming walk with that dear little thing!"
He was, however, altogether out in his reckoning. When the girl got close to the hut, she took a side path which ran in a south-easterly direction downwards amongst the rice-terraces, and which appeared to lead to Kaligaweh. Great was Mokesuep's disappointment at seeing this, and he was about to call out to her. Just then a Javanese came out of the hut and began beckoning to the girl.
"By heaven!" muttered Mokesuep, "that is Singomengolo, the opium spy. What in the world is he doing here?" And immediately he concealed himself behind some bushes which were growing by the wayside.
It was indeed Singomengolo, the wretch whom the evening before we saw leaving Kaligaweh and riding to the lonely hut. Again and again, he beckoned to the girl; but as she did not heed him, he cried out:
At this call the girl turned for an instant. Yes, it was pretty little Dalima, the baboe in the family of Mrs. van Gulpendam. She stopped for a moment, while her features showed undisguised terror as she recognised the notorious opium-hunter, whom she knew well by sight. She did not, however, stop for more than a single instant, and then sped on again as fast as she could.
"Dalima!" again cried Singomengolo, "Dalima, where are you hurrying to?"
"I am going to Kaligaweh," said the girl in a nervous tone of voice.
"Well, just come here for a moment," continued Singo.
"No, no," she replied, "I have not an instant to spare, I must get to my father as quickly as I possibly can," and again she sped on her way.
"Come here, I say," cried Singomengolo, "I have something to tell you about your father!"
"Oh, yes, I know," rejoined the young girl, "they told me father is very ill--that is why I am in such a hurry."
"You are wrong," cried Singo, "your father is not ill--it is something much worse than that."
The girl stopped at once: "Worse than that?" she asked, "tell me, is he dead?"
"Come here," said Singo, "and I will tell you. There are things, you know, that one cannot shout out by the wayside."
This brought Dalima to his side. As she walked up to him, she had to pass the bushes behind which Mokesuep was lying concealed--in fact, in passing she brushed by them. As usual Dalima was very neatly dressed. Round her waist she wore a gaily coloured sarong, her bodice was of pink cotton, and over her shoulders was folded a red kerchief, from one of the points of which dangled a bunch of keys.