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Her eyes dwelt upon Burke with undisguised admiration. "You've given him a good dose this time," she remarked. "Serve him right the dirty hound! Hope it'll be a lesson to the rest of 'em," and she shot a glance at Piet Vreiboom which was more eloquent than words.
And Piet Vreiboom sat back in his chair and stared at her, till the hot colour rose and spread over her face and neck, and then he puffed forth a cloud of vile smoke and laughed. At that juncture Mrs. Merston came forward with unusual briskness. "You had better go," she said, with great decision. "There is going to be a storm."
Low-browed, wide-nosed, and prominent of jaw, with close-set eyes of monkeyish craft, such was the countenance of Piet Vreiboom. He sat and stared at her, his hat on his head, his pipe in his mouth. "How do you do, Mrs. Ranger?" he said. Sylvia checked her advance, but in a moment Burke Ranger's hand closed, upon her elbow, quietly impelling her forward. "Mr.
"But it is yours really," Sylvia said. "No. It is yours." Burke spoke with insistence. "But I think he is right. You had better sell it. Vreiboom and some of Hoffstein's gang are after it. They don't know yet who won it. Donovan covered Guy's tracks pretty cleverly. But they'll find out. It isn't a thing to keep." She turned to him impulsively. "You take it, partner!" she said.
When he tried to get you into his toils frankly, I was terrified. He had dragged down so many," "And you think Guy might have been different but for him?" Sylvia questioned. "Yes. I believe I could have kept him straight if it hadn't been for Kieff. He and Piet Vreiboom were thick as thieves, and between them the boy got pulled under. I was beat, and Kelly, too." "Mr. Kelly!"
Vreiboom saw you with me at Ritzen yesterday," he said, and she suddenly remembered the knot of Boer farmers at the hotel-door and the staring eyes that had abashed her. She glanced up at Burke, but his face was quite emotionless. Only something about him an indefinable something held her back from correcting the mistake that Vreiboom had made.
It seemed to deprive her of the power to think, certainly of the power to reason. For what rational connection could there be between Kieff and the loss of Burke's key? Kieff was several miles away at the farm of Piet Vreiboom. And Guy where was Guy? She wished he would come back. Surely he would come back soon!
Piet Vreiboom slunk a little back, his low brows working uneasily. Kelly swallowed an oath in his throat; his hands were clenched. But Kieff, in a voice smooth as oil, made ready, mocking answer. "Oh, not at you, madam! Heaven forbid! What could any man find to smile at in such a model of virtuous propriety as yourself?" He was baiting her openly, and she knew it.
"So you are up!" he said. His voice was quite friendly, yet she was possessed by a strong feeling that he did not want her there. She looked back at him in some embarrassment. "I hope you don't mind," she said. "I was only coming out for a breath of air." "Why should I mind?" said Burke. "Come and sit on the stoep! My neighbour, Piet Vreiboom, is there, but he is just going."
But I'd seen ye look into his eyes when ye begged him off the brandy-bottle, and I knew the friendship between ye wasn't just the ordinary style of thing; no more is it. But it was that devil Kieff that threw the mud. I found him waiting that night when I got back. He was waiting for Burke, he said; and his story was that he and Vreiboom had seen the pair of ye eloping.
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