Page:The Mating of the Blades.djvu/90



“If thou shouldst need another regent in place of Ayesha Zemzem,” he suggested, “then I …”

“I have already thought of that,” replied the princess. “Step forth, Wahab al-Shaitan!”

And a shiver of apprehension ran through the crowd, while from a far corner of the hall where he had stood a motionless onlooker, dressed in motley black and scarlet, his immense hands crossed on the hilt of his beheading ax, the executioner, a gigantic, plum-colored negro, stalked forward with a sinister majesty of movement.

“Wahab al-Shaitan,” continued the princess, “thou art regent until further orders. Rawan-i-Sultana, 'Killer for the Queen,' shall be thy honorable title. Thy motto shall be: 'Do not trust the living; do not fear the dead.' And thy ax shall be thy staff and seal of office.”

Then, abruptly:

“The audience is ended, nobles and gentles.”

An immediate consequence of Aziza Nurmahal's sudden assertion was that the Babu Chandra, local manager of the Anglo-Asian Cable Company, decided suddenly that his head would be more safely on his shoulders if he delivered the cablegram which, addressed to the princess, had arrived that morning from London and which, at first, he had felt inclined to suppress—not because he understood the cryptic wording, but for the sake of general principles.

It was dated from London, bore no signature, and said: