'Jake, what are you doing?' she protested, but he ignored her.
'We'll mount the guns. It won't take long.' He was planning through
his rage, as he dragged them back along the wadi to where the cars were
parked beyond the caves.
Vicky and Gregoflus were helpless in the ferocity of his grip, swept
along by his strength and his anger.
'Vicky, you will drive for me. I'll serve the gun,' he told her.
'Greg, you drive for Gareth.' Jake's breathing was shallow and fast
with his rage. 'We can only man two cars, one we will use as a
diversion you and Gareth swing south along the back of the ridge and
that will keep them busy while Vicky and I pick up Sara and as many of
the others as we can find alive.' The two of them listened to him, and
were swept forward with a fresh urgency. As they ran back along the
wadi, a final brief storm of machine-gun fire and exploding mortar bomb
preceded the deep aching silence which now fell over the desert.
The three of them turned the final bend in the course of the wadi and
came upon a scene of utter pandemonium.
The ravine was filled solidly with those who had escaped the Italian
fire struggling to load their possessions, their tents and bedding,
their chickens and children, on to the panicky bellowing camels and the
skittering braying mules and donkeys.
Already hundreds of riders were galloping away, climbing the sides of
the wadi or disappearing into the labyrinth of broken ground. New
widows wailed in the uproar and their grief was catching, the children
shrieked, and whimpered in sympathy, and over it all hung a blue miasma
of smoke from the cooking fires and dust from the trampling hooves and
milling feet.
The four cars stood in their solid orderly rank, aloof from the masses
of humanity, gleaming in their coats of white paint with the vivid red
crosses emblazoned upon their sides.
Jake pushed a way through for them, towering head and shoulders above
the throng, and when they reached the nearest car Jake grasped Vicky
about the waist and swung her easily up into the sponson. For a moment
his expression softened.
'You don't have to come,' he said. 'I guess I went a little mad then,
you don't have to drive Gareth and I will take one car.' Her face was
deathly pale also, and there were deep bruised smears under her eyes
from a night without sleep and the horrors of the slaughter. Her tears
had dried, leaving dirty smears down her cheeks, but she shook her head
fiercely.
'I'm coming,' she said. 'I'll drive for you.'
'Good girl,' said Jake. 'Help Gregorius top up. We will need full
fuel tanks. I'll get the Vickers.' He turned away, shouting to
Gregorius. 'We'll use Miss Wobbly and Tenastelin Vicky will help you
refuel.' A detail from the Ras's personal bodyguard were already
bringing the wooden cases of weapons and munitions out of the storage
cave as Jake arrived. Each case was carried between four straining
troopers to where the camels knelt.
It was then lifted into the pannier on each side of the hump and
hastily lashed down.
