Hide and Seek for Love Read online

  Then he heard that they were eating and as his own stomach was empty, he remembered that he had not eaten for a long time.

  The Russians ate noisily, belching occasionally, but not speaking.

  Then, just like a wave breaking on a stony beach, the cave was suddenly filled with tribesmen.

  It seemed as if they all entered in a rush and David guessed that there were twelve or more of them.

  For twenty minutes he could hardly breathe as with every nerve in his body he listened to what was being said, thanking God that they were speaking Urdu in a dialect that he was familiar with.

  They were taking instructions from the Russians, who, like he, had taken the trouble to learn the language of the tribesmen.

  Their orders were quite simple.

  They were to attack the Fort at dawn the next day and be very careful meanwhile to keep out of sight so that the British inside would not realise that they were even in the vicinity.

  As he listened and continued listening, David could not help but being impressed by the way the Russians gave their orders.

  They had clearly thought out every detail and made it absolutely clear to the tribesmen what they were to do and how they were to do it.

  They were planning to overpower the Garrison of Fort Tibbee by sheer weight of numbers.

  “You must kill every man before they kill you,” the Russian was saying. “And if you’re lucky, which I believe you will be, most of the men in the Fort will be asleep.”

  He looked round him before continuing,

  “Those on guard must be overpowered before they can shoot and raise the alarm. Kill every man and when you’ve succeeded, clear out of the Fort and go back to your villages before reinforcements can arrive. Then they will not know who has attacked the Fort or on whom they can avenge themselves.”

  The tribesmen clearly understood.

  One or two asked questions, but on the whole they seemed happy with the Russian plan and were prepared to carry it out without seeing any particular difficulties.

  David knew that they had used just the same tactics many times before.

  As in the case of Forts that were overrun before the gates could be closed, there had been many cruel murders and assassinations for which no one had an explanation.

  As swiftly and stealthily as they had appeared, the tribesmen left, leaving a trail of destruction behind them.

  They were never very talkative, as David knew, and the two Russians were clever enough not to overload their minds.

  They had been given their orders and simply told when and how to attack the Fort and to lie low until the very last moment.

  When the tribesmen had gone, one of the Russians enquired to the other in his own language,

  “Do you think they understood?”

  “I’ll answer that question tomorrow evening,” the other Russian responded, “but we’ve been quite successful with these tribesmen in the past.”

  “That’s true and the Czar’s been saying, I believe, that while we have done well in Southern Asia, we’ve not made much impact on India so far.”

  The other man gave a laugh.

  “I thought that he was keeping that one for the end, when he adds India to the Russian Empire!”

  Listening to every word, David clenched his fists.

  For a good long time the Russian Empire had been steadily expanding at the rate of fifty-five square miles a day and he reckoned that this made over twenty thousand square miles a year.

  He remembered a statement he had heard at one of many meetings at Government House in Calcutta.

  A Senior Officer had said that at the beginning of the nineteenth century over two thousand miles separated the Russian Empire from the British in Asia.

  Yet now he knew – although few liked to think of it – it had shrunk to just a few hundred miles.

  David drew in his breath.

  He knew, as did so many in The Great Game, that the aggressive Cossack’s would only rein in their mounts and when India was theirs.

  At present he did not even want to think about it.

  What he had to do now was to sneak into the Fort without being suspected by the tribesmen.

  It was still some way away and he was well aware that there were tribesmen lying hidden amongst the rocks and the shrubs, preparing themselves for the onslaught just before dawn the next day.

  He waited for twenty minutes after the Russians left the cave, as he knew only too well that he had to be quite certain they were well out of sight before he appeared.

  Men had too often lost their lives for coming out of hiding too early – someone could come back for something he had left behind.

  The sun had risen while David was still in the cave and it almost blinded him as he climbed slowly down.

  He pulled his tattered garment into place – it had served its purpose well and he would need no excuse for buying a new one. Then, adjusting his headgear, he brushed a hand over his beard, which made him seem far older than he was.

  He moved out of the cave and into the open.

  There was no sign of anyone and yet he knew they were undoubtedly out there amongst the rocks in the high grass or sleeping peacefully without worrying themselves about what lay ahead.

  Slowly, very slowly, as it was always a mistake to seem to be in a hurry, he moved in the direction of the Fort.

  He opened the Holy Book he carried in his pocket.

  Anyone who saw him would think that he was engaged in prayer, compulsory for Muslims.

  If he thought anyone was suspicious of him, he was ready to go down on his knees and pray.

  There had been many occasions when this had not been a pretence. He had been praying desperately that he would not be discovered and that he would survive.

  His prayers had always been answered, but today he recognised that it had never been more important that he should reach Fort Tibbee in time.

  It would be a bad mistake to appear to be heading directly to the Fort, so he therefore made a detour passing some men lying beneath some bushes.

  They raised themselves to ask for his blessing and David gave it to them.

  He was word perfect in what he was supposed to say having been taught by a Muslim Imam and he had also listened to a genuine Holy man addressing his flock.

  He was fully aware of what he should say in answer to their requests.

  During the many journeys he had undertaken in this particular disguise no one had ever been suspicious of him.

  He had acquired a large amount of information that was desperately needed by those in command of the Army in India.

  He was now moving nearer and nearer to the Fort.

  As he did so, David was aware that in every small place of cover tribesmen were arriving in order to conceal themselves.

  They were coming in twos and threes and he began to think that however many men there were to defend the Fort they would be outnumbered by the enemy outside.

  He was desperately hungry and exceedingly thirsty in the heat of the sun, but he thought it would be a mistake to stop for any length of time or linger for too long to talk to the tribesmen who spoke to him.

  As he had learnt in his many years of service, just one faulty word or one uneasy movement could make the enemy suspicious.

  If he was on edge, the tribesmen were too, thinking about what they had to do before dawn the next day.

  On and on he shuffled, walking in the almost limp manner of a tired elderly man.

  As he grew nearer and nearer to the Fort, he could see there were just a few soldiers moving about with most of them obviously following the Indian habit of enjoying a long siesta at midday.

  There were a number of bushy shrubs growing not far from the main gate and David sat down in their shade, crossing his legs Indian style and bending his head as if he was concerned only with his prayers.

  The gates of the Fort were closed and he could only wait and hope that they would soon be opened to receive a visitor or one o
f their own Officers.

  It was over two hours later when he could see two horsemen followed by a detachment of soldiers coming up the side of an adjacent hill.

  They were, he thought, some Officers calling on the Colonel or perhaps they were carrying a message from the powers that be.

  It would be dangerous, as David well knew, for the Officers to ride alone without an escort.

  It was a regular joke that behind every stone on the North-West Frontier there was an enemy waiting to take a potshot at you.

  Sadly it was true and David knew that the Officers, although they appeared at ease, were acutely conscious that at any moment a rifle might be fired at them.

  To reach the path that led to the main gates of the Fort they would have to pass by him.

  Slowly he rose to his feet.

  Then, as the Officers rode towards him, he held out his hand.

  “Help the poor, Sahib. Help those who are hungry. Help those who are ill.”

  He was speaking exactly in the sing-song voice of an Indian beggar.

  As the Officers were completely ignoring him, he ran beside their horses, calling out again and again,

  “Help, Sahibs, please help and you will be blessed by Allah for your kindness.”

  Those watching from the Fort had seen the Officers approaching and the gates swung open.

  As the horsemen rode into the Fort, David followed closely behind them.

  He was well inside before the Sergeant of the guard saw him.

  “You,” he called out, “get out of ’ere!”

  The Sergeant walked menacingly towards him.

  As he reached him, David said in English,

  “Take me immediately to your Colonel – ”

  The Sergeant stared at him.

  By this time the two Officers had rode on and were dismounting as two soldiers ran to their horses’ heads.

  “Close the gate now,” David ordered the Sergeant. “Bolt it and then take me to the Colonel at once.”

  The Sergeant was obviously astonished, but equally he was aware that despite his extraordinary appearance the man speaking to him was English – and he was giving him orders in the same manner that a British Officer would do.

  David pulled off his headgear and smoothed back his greasy hair.

  He was tired, very tired, but he had achieved what he had set out to accomplish and this at least gave him a small glow of satisfaction.

  The Sergeant had told the guard to shut the gate and now he was back again at David’s side.

  “Who are you?” he demanded aggressively.

  “That is my business, Sergeant. Now do as I told you and hurry about it. There is no time to be lost.”

  Bewildered yet feeling he could not refuse to obey him, the Sergeant walked ahead.

  The two Officers, unaware of what had occurred, had already disappeared and their escort were chatting with a small group of soldiers.

  David could hear them laughing and no one had the slightest idea that he had achieved a minor victory in The Great Game by getting himself into the Fort unsuspected.

  He was led along various passages until they came to what David recognised were the Officers’ quarters.

  The Sergeant stopped outside a door, knocked and then he turned to David,

  “Now stay ’ere, while I tell the Colonel about you.”

  He opened the door and David pushed past him.

  Colonel Jones was seated at his writing desk and he looked up in astonishment at the figure confronting him.

  David raised his hand in salute.

  “Captain David Ingle reporting, sir!”

  “Good God!” exclaimed the Colonel. “I suppose as you are in disguise, you are on some sort of mission.”

  “Exactly, sir, and I have something of the greatest importance to tell you and it cannot wait.”

  The Colonel pointed to a chair on the other side of his desk.

  “Sit down, Captain, and I suppose, if you have been travelling in this heat, you would like something to drink.”

  “I would be most grateful, sir. I have had nothing to eat or drink for the last three days.”

  The Colonel rang a bell on his desk and the door opened immediately.

  “Food and drink,” he ordered the servant who had appeared, “and be quick about it.”

  As the servant closed the door, the Colonel turned to David, wiping his forehead with his hand.

  “What is this all about, Captain?”

  “You are going to be attacked in strength at dawn. Tribesmen are already collecting from every direction and I think, in the Russians’ eyes, it will be a major assault. If they can take this Fort, it would be a feather in their cap.”

  The Colonel was listening to David carefully.

  He picked up another bell and rang it vigorously.

  At once the door opened and an Officer appeared.

  “You rang, sir?”

  “I want every Officer and the Sergeant Major here immediately,” Colonel Jones barked out.

  The Officer’s eyes widened and then, as he looked at David in surprise, he replied,

  “I will send those who have not heard the bell, sir.”

  As he turned, three more Officers came hurrying into the room.

  The Colonel introduced them all to David and then told them to bring in some chairs.

  While they were doing so, the servant came back with a tray of food and a bottle of Indian beer. He set the tray down on the side of the desk and David began to eat.

  He was experienced enough to eat slowly, knowing that to gobble when one was starving was a grave mistake.

  The Colonel did not speak to him and he ate with a sense of relief and only as he finished the last drop of beer did he realise that the room was now filled.

  The Officers were all seated on the chairs and the Sergeant Major was standing against the wall.

  David looked up at the Colonel and smiled.

  “Thank you very much, sir. I have never enjoyed a meal more!”

  The Colonel laughed.

  “You will have another as soon as you have told us why you are here and why it is so urgent.”

  David turned his chair around so that he was facing the Officers in the room.

  “You must forgive me,” he began, “if I sit whilst I am talking, but I have been walking for what has seemed to me an age and my feet are somewhat tired.”

  He then informed them of what he had overheard in the cave, explaining in detail that he was there because of something he had heard in one of the local villages.

  Because the Officers suspected that he was in The Great Game, they listened to every word attentively and only when he had finished did they ply him with questions.

  He thought it only right to inform them about how close the Russians were to them and the devastation they were causing among the Khanates in the North and the Caravan towns.

  Finally the Colonel took over.

  “You have heard what Captain Ingle has told us and I will now tell you what we must do.”

  The Officers looked up at him as he continued,

  “We must wipe out the attackers before they reach the Fort. After midnight tonight every man who can use a rifle must be ready to shoot. Be vigilant; you may not see them until they are on top of us. Even though it is dark, you will be aware of a man moving towards the Fort, whether he is walking or on his stomach. It is absolutely essential that not one of them gain access.”

  “I should imagine, sir, they will be carrying some means of breaking down the gates.”

  “I have thought of that, Napier. They will not only be doubly strengthened but heavily guarded.”

  “I am certain that’s very wise, sir. Shall we go now and set up the barriers?”

  David gave a cry of protest.

  “They are watching the Fort from every available tree or even from a distant rock or hillock. Nothing should be moved and you should not give them the slightest idea that you are anticipating trouble?”
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br />   As an afterthought he added,

  “Is that not correct, sir?”

  He thought that perhaps the Colonel would resent his taking over.

  “You are so right, Captain. Everything must appear entirely normal. Moreover one can never be quite certain that they do not have sympathisers inside the Fort.”

  David sighed.

  “So true, sir. It has happened before and at the cost of many British lives.”

  “What we must do is relatively simple. Every rifle, every pistol has to be loaded and ready. But to all intents and purposes we are walking in the sunshine unperturbed, having not the slightest idea of what might happen. Is that, Captain Ingle, what you believe is the right tactic?”

  “It is the only tactic, sir.”

  David rose a little unsteadily to his feet.

  “May I rest for just two or three hours, sir?”

  “Of course. Of course,” Colonel Jones agreed as if he should have thought of it himself.

  He told one of the Officers to take him to his room where he knew there was a second bed.

  “Let him sleep, but wake the Captain before dinner which we will have a little later than usual.”

  David smiled.

  “I shall look forward to dinner, sir.”

  Major Atkins led him from the Colonel’s office.

  Only as they walked down the passage did David hear a burst of noise behind him and he guessed that every Officer had started talking all at once.

  Major Atkins’ room was comparatively cool and the bed was comfortable.

  At that moment David would have slept on a bed of nails and not been aware of it.

  He threw off his tattered robe, kicked off his shoes, lay down and was fast asleep before his head touched the pillow.

  Major Atkins shaded the window from the sun and then left the room closing the door quietly behind him.

  He then joined the turmoil upstairs realising that his brother Officers were all excited at the idea of action.

  Life could be seriously dull in a Fort where nothing happened day after day. There were few amusements and certainly not an attractive woman anywhere.

  As the Colonel had ordered, weapons were put at the ready. At the same time the only sign of activity was inside the buildings of the Fort.