It was their first kiss; but it was even as the welding of two souls. It was their first kiss, but for a very brief space the only one. With no further necessity for self-containment, John Ames seemed to pour forth his whole soul, his whole nature, in adoration of this girl, the first sight of whom had turned the whole current of his thoughts and inner life. All of this Nidia learned, and was infinitely, radiantly happy. "Shall I tell you something--darling?" she said. "Strange as it may sound, I have never loved anybody before--have never felt the slightest inclination to. But when I saw you, I knew the possibility was there. You were--are--so different to everybody else. I missed you so frightfully when you left to come up here. There, I never told you that before. And all the time we were out together in the mountains I loved being with you--felt so safe with you, somehow, and--Oh!" The last ejaculation was evoked by the appearance of a third party on the scene. In the doorway stood Mrs Bateman, speechless, her high-featured countenance livid with amazement, rage, and baffled spite. "Come here, Susie, and say, `Bless you, my children,'" called out Nidia, a lovely blush coming over her face, as she realised the very near propinquity in which she stood to the other occupant of the room, who, for his part, said nothing. But there came no answer. The other turned and walked away in silence. She had thrown her king and her ace, but the odd trick remained, and this John Ames held. Shiminya, the sorcerer, was seated in his _muti_ kraal on the Umgwane river, but he was not alone. With him sat Nanzicele, ex-sergeant of the native police. From the tone of their voices they seemed not on very good terms. Not to put too fine a point upon it, they were quarrelling. Now, the cause of the difference lay in the fact that Nanzicele aspired to join the ranks of the Abantwana 'Mlimo. Shiminya, on the other hand, was resolved that the hierarchy of the Great Abstraction would be better without him, and was breaking this resolve as gently as might be. But Nanzicele had been drinking. He had obtained some gin among certain overlooked loot of a sacked store, and Nanzicele, foiled in his objects, and half drunk, was a very unpleasant customer indeed, not to say a sufficiently formidable one. Now he was raising his voice threateningly, jeering Shiminya, and more than hinting that he was a rank impostor--he and all his cloth. The seer's snake-like eyes sparkled with vindictive hate, for he was no more fond of being reviled and insulted than other and commoner mortals. Another consideration actuating this precious pair was that each was in a position to give the other away. Both knew that the result of the rising was but a question of time, and each had an idea that he might purchase safety at the expense of the other.