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CHAPTER 5 - AOUDA

People sang and shouted. The noise came through the trees.

The guide stopped the elephant and they walked. They could see the temple, white in the dark night. Some men with guns sat round it and watched.

‘The young woman is inside the temple,’ said the guide, quietly. The dead man was on top of some wood, to the right. ‘ When the sun comes up, they will put the woman next to her husband. Then they will start the fire.’

‘We’ll have to think of something. We have to set the young woman out of there,’ said Phileas Fogg.

But Phileas Fogg and the guide did not have any ideas. And the men with guns round the temple did not go to sleep. They watched. They watched very carefully.

After an hour or two the guide said, ‘Mr. Fogg, where is your servant ?’

Phileas Fogg could not answer that. Passepartout was not there.

The sun came up in the east. The people woke and went noisily to the wood with the dead man on top. Then some men brought Aouda out of the temple. She did not move when they put her down on top of the wood, next to her dead husband.

There was something in her food again that morning.

Some men brought fire to the wood. Phileas Fogg stood up and opened his mouth. He wanted to shout,’ Stop!’

‘Get down!’ said the guide.’ They will kill us!’

But suddenly everything changed. The people gave a great shout, and they fell down on their faces with their eyes to the ground.

The old man was not dead. He stood up and took the young woman in his arms. Then he came down through the fire. He walked over the people on the ground. Then he carried the woman easily in strong arms to Phileas Fogg and the guide.

‘Let’s go!’ he said.’ Quickly!’

It was Passepartout.

A minute later, the three men and the young woman were on the elephant. Aouda slept and knew nothing about it.

The sun was high and hot in the sky. It was nearly 10 o’clock in the morning.

The young guide said,’ There, that is Allahabad. The railway starts again there. The train journey to Calcutta is about a day and a night.’

Phileas Fogg took a room at the railway station for Aouda.

He sent Passepartout into the town for clothes and other things for the young woman. When the train was ready, Aouda was better.

Before they got in the train, Phileas Fogg paid the guide.

‘That’s your money, because you were our guide,’ he said.’

But you helped us in other ways. Would you like the elephant?’

The young guide gave a big smile. That was his only answer.

On the journey to Calcutta, Aouda learned about her night in the temple and about Passepartout and the fire. She said’ Thank you’ again and again, but she was afraid of her husband’s family.

She didn’t want them to catch her again.

‘I’ll take you to Hong Kong,’ Phileas Fogg said, ‘and you can stay there.’

It was kind, but he spoke quite coldly.

She happily said, ‘ Oh, thank you! I have an uncle in Hong Kong. He will look after me.’

The train got to Calcutta at 7 o’clock in the morning. Phileas Fogg had five hours before the ship left for Hong Kong.