第77章 KEMEREZZEMAN AND BUDOUR.(39)
Enter now and make merry and whatsoever thou seekest of me，I will bring thee forthwith.So pass the night as thou wilt and on the morrow go thy way.This in honour of thy strangerhood，for I love strangers and hold myself bounden to do them honour.'So Amjed kissed his hand and returning to the saloon，with his face clad in its native white and red，said to the lady，O my mistress，the place is gladdened by thy presence，and this is indeed a blessed night.'Verily，'said she，this is a wonderful change in thee，that thou now welcomest me so cordially！'By Allah，O my lady，'answered he，methought my servant Behadir had robbed me of some necklaces of jewels，worth ten thousand dinars each；however，when I went out but now，in concern for this，I sought for them and found them in their place.I know not why the knave tarries thus，and needs must I punish him for it.'She was satisfied with his answer，and they drank and sported and made merry，till near upon sundown，when Behadir came in to them，having changed his clothes and girt his middle and put on shoes，such as are worn of servants.He saluted and kissed the earth，then clasped his hands behind him and stood，with his head hanging down，as one who confesses to a fault.Amjed looked at him with angry eyes and said，Why hast thou tarried till now，O most pestilent of slaves？O my lord，answered Behadir，I was busy washing my clothes and knew not of thy being here；for thou hadst appointed me for nightfall and not for the daytime.'But Amjed cried out at him，saying，Thou liest，O vilest of slaves！By Allah，I must beat thee！'So he rose and laying Behadir on the ground，took a stick and beat him gingerly： but the lady sprang up and snatching the stick from his hand，laid on to Behadir so lustily，that the tears ran from his eyes and he ground his teeth together and called out for succour；
whilst Amjed cried out to the lady to hold her hand and she answered，Let me stay my anger on him；till at last he snatched the stick from her hand and pushed her away.Behadir arose and wiping away his tears，waited upon them awhile；after which he swept the hall and lighted the lamps；but，as often as he went in and out，the lady railed at him and cursed him，till Amjed was wroth with her and said，For Gods sake，leave my servant；he is not used to this.'Then they sat eating and drinking，whilst Behadir waited upon them，till midnight，when the latter，weary with service and beating，fell asleep in the midst of the hall and snored and snorted；whereupon the lady，who was heated with wine，said to Amjed，Arise，take the sword that hangs yonder and cut off this slaves head，or I will be the death of thee.'
What possesses thee to kill my slave？asked Amjed；and she answered，Our delight will not be fulfilled but by his death.
If thou wilt not kill him，I will do it myself.'For Gods sake，'cried Amjed，do not this thing！'It must be，'replied she and taking down the sword，drew it and made at Behadir to kill him；but Amjed said in himself，This man hath entreated us courteously and sheltered us and done us kindness and made himself my servant： and shall we requite him by killing him？
This shall never be.Then he said to the lady，If my slave must be killed，better I should do it than thou.'So saying，he took the sword from her and raising his hand，smote her on the neck and made her head fly from her body.It fell upon Behadir，who awoke and sitting up，saw Amjed standing by him，with the bloodstained sword in his hand，and the damsel lying dead.He enquired what had passed，and Amjed told him what she had said，adding，Nothing would serve her but she must kill thee；and this is her reward.'Behadir rose and kissing the princes hand，said to him，Would God thou hadst spared her！But now there is nothing for it but to rid us of her forthright，before the day break.'So saying，he wrapped the body in a mantle and laying it in a basket，said to Amjed，Thou art a stranger here and knowest no one： so sit thou here and await my return.If I come back，I will assuredly do thee great good service and use my endeavour to have news of thy brother；but if I return not by sunrise，know that all is over with me；in which case the house and all it contains are thine，and peace be on thee.'Then he shouldered the basket and going forth，made for the sea，thinking to throw it therein： but as he drew near the shore，he turned and found himself surrounded by the chief of the police and his officers.
They knew him and wondered and opened the basket，in which they found the slain woman.So they seized him and laid him in irons till the morning，when they carried him and the basket to the King and acquainted the latter with the case.The King was sore enraged and said to Behadir，Out on thee！This is not the first time thou hast slain folk and cast them into the sea and taken their goods.How many murders hast thou done ere this？Behadir hung his head，and the King cried out at him，saying，Woe to thee！Who killed this young lady？O my lord，'answered Behadir，I killed her，and there is no power and no virtue but in God the Most High，the Supreme！'At this the Kings anger redoubled and he commanded to hang him.So the hangman and the chief of the police went down with him，by the Kings commandment，and paraded him through the streets and markets of the town，whilst a crier forewent them，bidding all the folk to the execution of Behadir，the Kings Master of the Horse.