His companions would have given much to escape this fresh excursion but there was no possible means by which they could do so.
The church proved to be a gloomy, domed building something after the style of a mosque but lacking minarets. Its interior was dark and smelly. A number of incredibly dirty looking priests squatted about telling their beads. The whole place reeked with decay and semi pagan superstition.
There were a few mosaics showing scenes from the life of Christ in which the figures had the big heads, great, staring, almond shaped eyes, and thin, emaciated bodies seen in very early missals and Byzantine paintings.
Yohannes treated them to a dissertation upon the importance of Abyssinia remaining free to develop her heritage of a distinctive culture, during which Lovelace found it difficult not to laugh.
It might be true that with its warring barons, powerful churchmen, and slave population the real Abyssinia was eight hundred years behind the times but it possessed no chivalrous knighthood, seats of monastic learning, or gay hearted troubadours as had medieval Europe; and to speak of this debased Coptic art, which had not advanced for centuries, as though it held the growing glory of the Gothic was patently absurd.
Climbing back into the car once more they drove to Madam Idot's cafe bar, where they drank cocktails of a sort.
Valerie was growing used to the sight of lepers now that she had been in Addis Ababa for two days, they swarmed everywhere, but she was nearly sick when, as they left the bar, one woman tried to paw her with pale stumpy fingers from which the nails had fallen away. Yohannes drove the woman off with a sharp blow from his stick. It seemed that whips and sticks were the only method of enforcing order known to the ruling caste in Abyssinia. Even Christopher had realised now that, much as he liked Yohannes personally, his day and that of the class he represented was
done. In common humanity it was high time that white men took over the administration of the hopelessly backward black Empire.
For lunch Yohannes took them to the Deutsches Haus, a pension run by an honest German couple, renowned for having the best food in Addis.
Over the meal he began to make plans for the afternoon. A visit to the hospital where the Empress herself supervised the tending of the wounded. It was very modern; a real sign of the progress they were making. Then they should see the new palace which the Emperor had built some years before to accommodate the Crown Prince of Sweden during his visit to Addis. But Valerie complained of a splitting headache and declared she was quite incapable of doing any more sightseeing that day. Her pitifully drawn face touched Lovelace to the heart, yet he was profoundly glad of this genuine excuse to get rid of their charming, but most unwelcome, cicerone.
Blatta Ingida Yohannes expressed the most solicitous regret at Valerie's indisposition, drove them back to their hotel at once, and, having received their thanks, declared his intention of calling for them at the same hour the following morning,
Christopher watched him go with some regret. In their short acquaintance he had developed a real liking for the sensitive, well mannered young man, and he knew that it was the last they would see of him. By the following morning they would either be dead or on their way out of Abyssinia. Slowly, his heart working overtime, he followed Valerie and Lovelace up to their private sitting room.
`It's an inside job,' Lovelace said immediately they had got rid of the interpreter and servants Yohannes had hired for them, whom they found lounging about the place.
`A what?' asked Christopher wearily, sinking into a chair.
"I mean there's no hope of our breaking in from the outside as we did at Zarrif’s house in Athens. There'll be blacks sleeping all over the place and we'd be certain to rouse some of them if we came in over the wall On the other hand, if we can once get inside we may succeed in remaining unnoticed among that big crowd made up of Ras Desoum's household and hangers on.'
`How could you?' exclaimed Valerie.
`Oh, not dressed as we are.' Lovelace gave her a reassuring smile. `We'll have to disguise ourselves as natives. I wish to God I spoke the language but I thought out a way to get over that coming back in the car. I mean to rig myself out as an Arab merchant. I can speak Arabic and I've posed as one before. We'll buy a stock of goods from the bazaars and Christopher can come along as my porter. They're used to Arabs peddling goods, all over Africa, so they'll have no reason to suspect we're not what we appear and Ras Desoum's head servants probably know enough Arabic to barter with me for odds and ends. We must move quickly though. If we're not inside that outer court by sundown we'll be done, because they're certain to close the gates then for the night to keep out beggars, robbers and hyenas.'
`Aren't we going to have an awful job getting this kit together in the time?' Christopher inquired.
`I don't know. I'm banking on the chance that Henrick Heiderstam will help us. I'm going down to the airport to try and get hold of him now so long!'
As Lovelace left them Valerie and Christopher stared miserably at each other. After a moment he came over and perched himself on the arm of her chair.
`This is rotten for you, Valerie isn't it,' he said gently, 'all your life mucked up because I'm a crazy fellow who must be risking his neck and the safety of his friends because he wants to make a better world; but I'll do my best to see that he gets out.'
'He,' she repeated dully.
`Yes, it's my show not his, and I can't help liking him, although there're moments when I'd gladly see him dead after what he did last night.'
'Oh, Christopher!' she moaned. `I thought you promised you'd forget about that, and it wasn't his fault really.'
`I know, I know,' he stood up impatiently, 'but it needs two people who're drawn to each other to make; love, just as it needs two people who're angry with: each other to make a quarrel. Never mind about that though. He's taking his chance with me when he might well remain here with you and leave me to do this ghastly job on my own. There'll be time enough to talk of other things if either of us comes out alive.
'Oh, Christopher, don't! don't!' she pleaded and began to dab her eyes.
Instantly he was all solicitude and knelt down to comfort her. For a long time they remained like that and Lovelace found them still huddled together when he returned.
`It's all right,' he announced abruptly, `I had the devil's own job to persuade Heidenstam into helping us as, naturally, I couldn't give away what we are up to, He consented in the end though; after I'd sworn by everything I hold sacred we intended nothing which could possibly harm the Emperor. Once he'd agreed he proved a real trump. He's at the bazaar now getting; us the merchandise we shall require and the kit necessary for us to rig ourselves out as Arabs. I got the stain for our faces at the chemist's on the way back and I've hired a small car, in which we can drive ourselves out there, to be here at five o'clock. We'll park it near Ras Desoum's place so it's handy for a quick get away r our luck holds out. Heidenstam's coming here immediately he's got the goods and whatever happens he's promised to take care of Valerie. He'll take her to the airport directly we've gone and help her to see her plane's fit to leave at a moment's notice without any bother from the aerodrome people. If we fail to turn up he’ll place her in the care of Connolly at the American legation by breakfast time tomorrow. The thing that worries me though is these cursed mountains. If we do get away dare we risk a flight through such difficult country by night?'
`It's that or a hundred to one on our being arrested for murder,' Christopher said slowly. 'You see, we've got to leave here dressed as Arabs in daylight; there's no time now to arrange for our changing anywhere. Even if we're not recognised someone's certain to notice us on our way out. Ras Desoum will raise the whole place directly I've had my talk with Zirrif and, as everyone knows everybody else's business in this wretched town, the hotel people will remember Valerie paying her bill here and that they never saw either of us leave. Then some one'll remember the two Arabs and guess they were you and me. Our only chance is in the lead we may be able to get by making a dash for the airport in this car you've hired, but if we wait there till dawn orders are certain to arrive to stop all planes leaving.'