“That remains to be seen, my friend,” said Mr. Clifford with a laugh, for he was a brave old man. “I am not certain that the God—whom you do not believe in—will not kill you first.”
Now Benita, who had been taking counsel with herself, looked up and said suddenly:
“Very well, Mr. Meyer, I consent—because I must. To-morrow morning you shall try to mesmerize me, if you can, in the same place, before the crucifix in the cave.”
“No,” he answered quickly. “It was not there, it was here, and here it shall be again. The spot you mention is unpropitious to me; the attempt would fail.”
“It is the spot that I have chosen,” answered Benita stubbornly.
“And this is the spot that I have chosen, Miss Clifford, and my will must prevail over yours.”
“Because you who do not believe in spirits are afraid to re-enter the cave, Mr. Meyer, lest you should chance——”
“Never mind what I am or am not afraid of,” he replied with fury. “Make your choice between doing my will and your father’s life. To-morrow morning I shall come for your answer, and if you are still obstinate, within half an hour he will be dead, leaving you and me alone together. Oh! you may call me wicked and a villain, but it is you who are wicked, you, you, you who force me to this deed of justice.”
Then without another word he sprang up and walked away from them backwards, as he went covering Mr. Clifford with the pistol which he had drawn from his pocket. The last that they saw of him were his eyes, which glowered at them through the darkness like those of a lion.
“Father,” said Benita, when she was sure that he had gone, “that madman really means to murder you; there is no doubt of it.”
“None whatever, dear; if I am alive to-morrow night I shall be lucky, unless I can kill him first or get out of his way.”
“Well,” she said hurriedly, “I think you can. I have an idea. He is afraid to go into that cave, I am sure. Let us hide ourselves there. We can take food and shall have plenty of water, whereas, unless rain falls, he can get nothing to drink.”
“But what then, Benita? We can’t stop in the dark for ever.”
“No, but we can wait there until something happens. Something must and will happen. His disease won’t stand still. He may go raving mad and kill himself. Or he may attempt to attack us, though that is not likely, and then we must do what we can in self defence. Or help may reach us from somewhere. At the worst we shall only die as we should have died outside. Come, let us be quick, lest he should change his mind, and creep back upon us.”
So Mr. Clifford gave way, knowing that even if he could steel himself to do the deed of attempting to kill Jacob, he would have little chance against that strong and agile man. Such a struggle would only end in his own death, and Benita must then be left alone with Meyer and his insane passions.
Hurriedly they carried their few belongings into the cave. First they took most of the little store of food that remained, the three hand lamps and all the paraffin; there was but one tin. Then returning they fetched the bucket, the ammunition, and their clothes. Afterwards, as there was still no sign of Meyer, they even dared to drag in the waggon tent to make a shelter for Benita, and all the wood that they had collected for firing. This proved a wearisome business, for the logs were heavy, and in his crippled state Mr. Clifford could carry no great burden. Indeed, towards the end Benita was forced to complete the task alone, while he limped beside her with his rifle, lest Jacob should surprise them.
When at length everything was done it was long past midnight, and so exhausted were they that, notwithstanding their danger, they flung themselves down upon the canvas tent, which lay in a heap at the end of the cave near the crucifix, and fell asleep.