At this instant Sapt came up.
"The horses are all right; there's the own brother to the one that
brought you here. But you may save yourself that job."
"I'll not go before he's buried."
"Yes, you will."
"Not I, Colonel Sapt; not for all Ruritania."
"You fool!" said he. "Come here."
He drew me to the door. The moon was sinking, but about three hundred
yards away, coming along the road from Zenda, I made out a party of men.
There were seven or eight of them; four were on horseback and the rest
were walking, and I saw that they carried long implements, which I
guessed to be spades and mattocks, on their shoulders.
"They'll save you the trouble," said Sapt. "Come along."
He was right. The approaching party must, beyond doubt, be Duke
Michael's men, come to remove the traces of their evil work. I hesitated
no longer, but an irresistible desire seized me.
Pointing to the corpse of poor little Josef, I said to Sapt:
"Colonel, we ought to strike a blow for him!"
"You'd like to give him some company, eh! But it's too risky work, your
Majesty."
"I must have a slap at 'em," said I.
Sapt wavered.
"Well," said he, "it's not business, you know; but you've been good
boy--and if we come to grief, why, hang me, it'll save us lot of
thinking! I'll show you how to touch them.
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