He walked down to the water's edge, where he was presently joined by
Joseph with a lantern.
The two boats came on to the sloping shore with a grating sound, and
by the light of the waving lantern Oscard saw Durnovo and Jack land
from the same boat.
The three men walked up to the house together. Marie was at the
door, and bowed her head gravely in answer to Jack's salutation.
Durnovo nodded curtly and said nothing.
In the sitting-room, by the light of the paraffin lamp, the two
Englishmen exchanged a long questioning glance, quite different from
the quick interrogation of a woman's eyes. There was a smile on
Jack Meredith's face.
"All ready to start to-morrow?" he inquired.
"Yes," replied Oscard.
And that was all they could say. Durnovo never left them alone
together that night. He watched their faces with keen, suspicious
eyes. Behind the moustache his lips were pursed up in restless
anxiety. But he saw nothing--learnt nothing. These two men were
inscrutable.
At eleven o'clock the next morning the Simiacine seekers left their
first unhappy camp at Msala. They had tasted of misfortune at the
very beginning, but after the first reverse they returned to their
work with that dogged determination which is a better spirit than
the wild enthusiasm of departure, where friends shout and flags
wave, and an artificial hopefulness throws in its jarring note.
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