Halil Patrona now lost not a moment in locking up his shop, and taking
the odalisk by the hand led her away with him to his poor lonely
dwelling-place.
All the way thither the girl never uttered a word.
On reaching the house Halil made the girl sit down by the hearth, and
then addressed her in a tender, kindly voice.
"Here is my house, whatever you see in it is mine and yours. The whole
lot is not very much it is true, but it is all our own. You will find no
ornaments or frankincense in my house, but you can go in and out of it
as you please without asking anybody's leave. Here are two piastres,
provide therewith a dinner for us both."
The worthy Mussulman then returned to the bazaar, leaving the girl alone
in the house. He did not return home till the evening.
Meanwhile Guel-Bejaze had made the two piastres go as far as they could,
and had supper all ready for him. She placed Halil's dish on the
reed-mat close beside him, but she herself sat down on the threshold.
"Not there, but come and sit down by my side," said Halil, and seizing
the trembling hand of the odalisk, he made her sit down beside him on
the cushion, piled up the pilaf before her, and invited her with kind
and encouraging words to fall to. The odalisk obeyed him. Not a word had
she yet spoken, but when she had finished eating, she turned towards
Halil and murmured in a scarce audible voice,
"For six days I have eaten nought."
"What!" exclaimed Halil in amazement, "six days! Horrible! And who was
it, pray, that compelled you to endure such torture?"
"It was my own doing, for I wanted to die.
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