As he turned on his heel and left her, she collapsed on the bed. The hair on her forehead was wet with sweat and the top of her head one terrible ache where for several moments her scalp had had to take the weight of her whole body. After a while, still sobbing, she crept between the sheets and lay there in abject misery for what seemed an endless time.

Actually it was about two hours, then the door opened and he came in again. Putting down a big parcel he had with him, he leant over her and said abruptly, 'Sit up.'

'You brute!' she flared, cowering further away from him under the bedclothes.

'Sit up,' he repeated. 'I'll not hurt you this time.'

Doubting him, but not daring to refuse, she levered herself up into a sitting position. Her head was still aching intolerably where the hair had been almost torn from it, but when she instinctively put up her hands to defend herself, he took them both and pushed them down to her sides.

'Not a move, now,' he ordered. Then, while muttering some gibberish under his breath, with the index finger of his left hand he made the sign of the reversed swastika on the top of her head. As though by magic - and, indeed, it was by magic - the pain eased then faded away completely.

'Thanks,' she sighed, her eyes wide with wonder. 'Oh, thank you! But why did you have to be so brutal?'

'Teach you not to try to run out on me.'

'I wasn't,' she lied.

'Can that! I know you were. I picked it up from your vibrations. What's been eating you? You get plenty kick out of being my squaw, don't you?'

Knowing she must humour him, she raised a smile. 'Yes, of course, lots. You are a wonderful lover.'

'Then why the yen to quit?'

Swiftly she searched her mind for some reason that would sound plausible, yet not offend or make him angry. After a moment inspiration came to her, and she hedged. 'I didn't want to really. It was not until I was walking along the road that the idea suddenly came into my head. You see, I'd been looking forward tremendously to my initiation and on Saturday night, but for you, I'd have been made a Sister of the Ram. Don't think I'm not grateful to you for having saved me from that beast Ratnadatta. I am. But I do want to be initiated and I can't be until I'm back in London. I felt sure you wouldn't be willing to let me go; so I was toying with the idea of going while I had the chance. That was the thought wave of mine that you must have picked up.'