CHAPTER XXI

"THE END DOES NOT ALWAYS JUSTIFY THE MEANS"

When Tera made the astounding statement that she it was who had killed Zara poor Rachel laughed incredulously. She thought the girl was joking, and she felt she could in nowise appreciate such ill-timed humour. She was really angry.

"It is too bad of you, Bithiah," she said, flushing. "Did you get that money out of me, did you take me from Herbert's sick-bed, only to talk in this silly manner? You should know enough of English life by this time to behave yourself. I don't like such jokes."

Tera shrugged her shoulders in a way she had picked up at school, and flicked the horse. "I am not joking," she said calmly; "I did kill Zara."

"I cannot believe it," cried Rachel, in horror.

"Just as you please, but I am telling you the truth."

"Tera! Bithiah! Do you mean to say that you strangled Zara?"

"Ioé," said Tera, pettishly. "How often am I to speak?"

Rachel looked at her in horror. She knew that, in spite of her veneer of civilization, this native girl was a savage at heart. Doubtless she thought no more of taking a human life than an ordinary person would of killing a fly; but it was terrible to hear her admit the fact so calmly. In spite of the conviction which was stealing over her that Tera spoke the truth, Rachel tried her best to fight against it.

"I cannot believe it! I cannot!" she kept repeating; "you would not be so cruel."

"I was not cruel. She died very quietly. I pulled the cord tightly--and she was gone." And Tera, with a side-glance at her companion, chirrupped to the horse. She spoke quite frankly, for besides Rachel, who had paid her five hundred pounds for this information, there was only Tolai in the back seat to hear her. And even if the Polynesian had been able to understand her, she was in no danger from him.

Rachel shrank back from the girl with terror. "Bithiah! In God's name, why did you kill her? She had done you no harm."

"No. But I was afraid she would talk about our changing dresses, and Mr. Johnson would follow me. I thought it best to kill her," said Tera, calmly.

"I don't believe you," cried Rachel again; "you are making this up."

"Aüe! what trouble you make over this dead one. If in my island we talked so over every one who was killed, why----" Tera shrugged her shoulders, and continued more earnestly--"Listen! I will tell you all. I met Zara in the field, and I gave her a pearl that I might wear her dress. We changed, and I was going away. Then I thought she might betray me, and then Misi Brand would come after me. I was sorry I had not killed her. I had no knife or club, and I was not strong enough to strangle her with my hands. Then I remembered I had a cord of silk. I took this off the curtain, in Mr. Johnson's study some days before. It was blue, red, and white, very pretty, and I used it to tie round my waist, I gave it to Zara when we changed clothes. I could have killed her with that, and was sorry I had not done so, that she might tell no stories of me, and part me from Jack. But she was gone, so I walked on. Then I went back to the field."

"To kill her?" gasped Rachel.

"Ioé! to kill her," answered Tera, serenely; "but I could not do so at first, for she was talking to Mr. Mayne. Then she left him. He went down to Grimleigh, and Zara came towards me, crying. When she saw me, she ran up, and asked me for her certificate of marriage, which was sewn in her dress. She had forgotten it. I saw a chance then. I asked her to give me back the silk cord which she had round her waist. She gave it to me at once, and ripped the certificate out of the skirt of her dress, which I wore. As she bent down to do so, I threw the cord round her neck. She died very quietly," said Tera, musingly. "I do not think she felt pain. When she was dead, I dragged her along by the fence into the corn--a good way in, so that her body might not be seen. After that I went away, and caught the train to London. So you----"

"Oh!" cried Rachel, frantically. "Let me down! let me down! you wicked, wicked girl!"

Still holding the reins with one hand, Tera seized Rachel's wrist with the other, and held her to her seat. "I will not let you," she said fiercely; "if you try to go, I will tell Tolai to kill you. Be quiet! Listen! I tell you this to save your Herbert. But I do not want to be shut up in prison. Now Jack has the money, he will sail away. I go also, and when I am away, you can tell the truth."

"No one will believe me."

"Oh!" said Tera, who had lately learned the value of written statements, "I will write out all I tell you, and sign it Bithiah, Tera, what you will. Then I sail away, and no one will shut me up. Now you can go"--she pulled up the horse with a jerk--"but do not speak yet. If you do, I will say you--you will be sorry--that's all. Wait till I give you the paper and sail away with my dear Jack, You hear?"

"Yes, yes," said Rachel, her teeth chattering with fright at this exhibition of Tera's savagery. "I will say nothing--not a word!"

"Good! You can go, then. I drive on to Grimleigh, and go on board the schooner, where I shall be safe. I shall not return, and the trap I will leave to some one to take back."

Rachel, trembling violently, scrambled down as best she could. In her terror she believed that Tera might order Tolai to kill her. It was a strange experience to be at the mercy of two bloodthirsty savages on a quiet English road. Without a word she picked up her skirts and ran back, only anxious to get safely home. Tera burst into a jeering laugh at her manifest cowardice, then drove on at full speed to Grimleigh. Not until she was safe on board the schooner, with Jack beside her, would she feel secure. The laws in England were scarcely so lax as those in Koiau, and she could not presume on her rank as a chief's daughter in this land of the haolis (whites). After all, Tera had no reason to jeer at Rachel. In a different way she was just as great a coward. She did not fear death in itself, but she dreaded lest anything should part her from Jack.

On arriving at the jetty, Tera carried out the programme which she had explained to Rachel. The _Dayspring_ was anchored some distance out stream, so she hired a boat, and made Tolai, who was a brawny Polynesian Samson, carry the precious box of gold to it. Then she handed over the horse and trap to a fisherman she knew, and gave him half-a-crown to take it round to the Anchor Hotel, whence a stable-hand could drive it back to Bethdagon. In making these arrangements Tera displayed considerable mother-wit. She was quick in looking after her own interests.

In ten minutes, more or less, the boat was alongside the _Dayspring_, and Jack, with considerable amazement, looked over the taffrail. "Hullo, Tera!" he cried, "anything wrong?"

"No. All is right, Jack. Get this box on board, and take it to your cabin at once. Is Captain Jacob here?" she added, as Jack helped her up the side.

"Gone ashore. Do you want to see him?"

"I want to see you. Tolai, come!" she said in native, then slipped again into English. "Take care of the box, Jack."

"Seems a heavy box. What is in it?"

"I will tell you soon," said Tera, wisely, for two or three of the crew were within earshot. "Come to your cabin, my Jack."

The box was carried into the cabin by Tolai. Tera closed the door and looked round.

"We are safe here, are we not?" she asked. "No one will hear?"

"Of course not," replied Finland, somewhat surprised. "What on earth are you driving at?"

"Open the box," said Tera, handing her lover the key with an air of triumph. Jack, still puzzled, proceeded to do as he was told. When the lid was thrown open, and the wrappings had been removed, he was amazed to see the pile of golden sovereigns.

"Gold! Money!" he cried, falling back a pace. "Great Scott, Tera! how did you get this?"

Tera crowed like a delighted child. "It is a long, long story. Guess who gave it to me."

"My uncle?"

"No, no, not your uncle," cried the girl, clapping her hands. "Rachel!"

"Rachel!" repeated Jack. "This is her own money, then? Why did she give it to you?"

"I said, 'You give me five hundred pounds for my Jack, and I will tell you who killed Zara.' Rachel said yes, to save Herbert. She gave me the money, and I brought it here. Now, my Jack, we can go to my own island, where you will be a great chief."

"Hold on, Tera," said Finland, seriously, "how do you know who killed this girl?"

"Oh! I know--I know. It was I who killed her!"

"You!" Jack dropped back on a locker as though he had been shot, and every drop of blood ebbed from his face. "You--killed--Zara?"

Tera began to be frightened. There was a look on Jack's face she had never seen before.

"Why do you look so?" she faltered. "Am I a bad girl? Oh no. Poor Tera is good to you. She brings you this money; she gives you her pearls."

"There is some devilry about this," cried Jack, hoarsely, seizing her wrist. "I don't believe you killed the girl. Tell me the story you told Rachel, and how you got this money. Quick! Every word."

Tera collapsed on to the floor and began to weep.

"Aué!" she wailed, rocking herself to and fro, "you are cruel to poor Tera. Aué!"

"Tell me the story. I'll swear you did not murder the girl. Tolai, sit in that corner," he added, for the Polynesian was much distressed by Tera's tears. "Obey me at once, or I'll sling you overboard. Now then, Tera, tell me the truth."

But it was not so easy to loosen Tera's tongue. She was half-angry with Jack, and half-frightened of his stern manner. However, by coaxing and threatening and commanding, he managed to extract from her the story she had told Rachel, in order to obtain the money. When he was in full possession of the facts, he took a turn round the cabin. He was in despair. Knowing that Tera was half a savage, he saw no reason to doubt the truth of her statement. She did not regard murder with the horror of a European. She did not think it was a particularly great sin, in spite of her Christian training. Jack loved the girl, and wished to marry her, particularly as the marriage would place him comfortably and influentially in the semi-savage life he found most congenial. But it seemed that Tera had killed the unhappy Zara in a most cold-blooded way, and with the slightest of motives. He did not care to take the murderess to his bosom.

In the mean time Tera sat on the cabin floor in a sulky frame of mind. Privately she considered that she had tricked Rachel out of her money in a very clever way, and deserved praise rather than blame. She could not understand why her lover made such a fuss over such a small matter as the murder of this wretched girl. He could have killed a dozen in Koiau without causing her the least annoyance. So she sat still, weeping and sulking, and very much inclined--with the pettish temper of a childish nature--to end the whole trouble by throwing herself overboard. In spite of her conversion and education, poor wilful Tera had yet to learn the A B C of civilization.

"Tera," said Jack at length, in a grave voice, "this is a serious matter."

"I don't see that it is," whimpered the girl. "You didn't love Zara."

"No, but I didn't wish you to kill her, my dear."

"Kill her!" Tera looked up in amazement. "But I didn't kill her."

Finland was so dumfounded that he could only stare.

"I did not kill her," repeated Tera, rising. "What makes you think I did?"

"Why--why--you said so!"

"Of course I did--to Rachel. She would not give me the money you wanted unless I told her who killed Zara. I don't know who did, and I couldn't think of any one else, so I said I killed her."

"Tera!" Jack's arms were round her, and his voice was shaking with the emotion caused by a sense of relief. "Then you made up this story to get the money?"

"Why, of course. You didn't think it was true, Jack?"

"Upon my soul, I did," gasped Jack, not knowing whether to be amused or angered. "Oh, Lord, Tera, what a fright you have given me! You told me the story with so much detail that I thought it was all square. I never heard better lying in my life."

"You are not angry now, Jack?"

"Well, I am a bit. You are a bad girl, Tera, to deceive Rachel so."

Tera began to whimper again. "I wanted to get the money. I could get it in no other way. I never saw Zara after we changed clothes, and I know no more than you do who killed her. What trouble you make over this woman! I would have killed her myself, had I wished to; but I did not."

"I'm very glad you didn't," said Jack, emphatically. "Well, I must see Rachel about this, and tell her you were joking."

"But you won't give back the money?"

Jack looked at the box of gold, and felt very much inclined to keep it after Tera's difficulty and perjury in getting it. But Finland was an honest man, so he put the temptation from him.

"I must, Tera," said he, with a sigh; "you got the money under false pretences. I can't take Rachel's little fortune."

"Aué!" wailed Tera, dismally; "she wants to lend it to you. She told me so; indeed she did."

"Ah, that's a different matter. If Rachel lends me the money, I must see her about it. I'll pay her back, principal and interest, in a year or two. I wish I had known of her intention before you put your oar in, lass."

"I did what I did for you."

"All right. Don't pipe your eye again," and Jack patted her hand. "Now let us go back to my uncle. I'll see Rachel, and square your trouble."

"I don't want to go back, Jack. I've come to stay here."

"You can't do that, Tera."

"I will stay here," said Tera, doggedly. "Let us marry and go away."

Jack scratched his head. He did not exactly know how to deal with this unreasonable native. He closed the box and turned towards the door. At that moment it opened. To Tera's profound surprise she beheld Pharaoh Lee.