, trying to steady her quivering lips.

"We're all right," said Bell grimly. "This is the _fazenda_ of a
sub-deputy. I suspect, also, it's an emergency landing field for
Ribiera on the way to that place he talked to last night. There's a
two-place plane here with both wheels and floats, in a filthy little
shed. It seems to be all right. We're going to take off in it and try
to make Moradores, where your people are. What's the matter?"

Her face was deathly pale.

"I thought," she said with some difficulty, "when I heard the shots--I
thought you were killed."

Bell shook his head.

"I wasn't," he said grimly. "It was four other men who were killed."

* * * * *

He led her carefully past the house. It was a fairly typical _fazenda_
dwelling, if more substantial than most. It was wholly unpretentious,
with whitewashed walls, and the effect of grandeur it would give to
natives of this region would come solely from the number of buildings.
There were half a dozen or more.

"I killed four men," repeated Bell coldly. "And I'm damned glad of it.
That scream we heard.... I know pretty well what happened here last
night. Remember, Ribiera spoke of using a beam-wireless to make his
report. He must have had a short-wave beam set somewhere on the
outskirts of Rio, aimed at whatever headquarters he reports to. He's
going up to that headquarters some time to-day, by plane, of course.
He needed emergency landing fields along the route, and here he picked
out a native and made him a sub-deputy. Charming...."

Moving past the buildings, Paula caught sight of massive wooden bars
set in the side of a building. Something crumpled up and limp lay
before them.

"Don't look over there," said Bell harshly. "There was a woman in this
house and she told me what happened, though I'd guessed it before. The
sub-deputy was here last night with a party of friends. Newly
enslaved, some of them. He entertained them.... Up at Ribiera's place
a girl told me she and her husband had been shown a Secret Service
man. He went mad before their eyes. It was an object-lesson for them,
a clear illustration of what would happen to them if they ever
disobeyed. I imagine that something of the sort is used by all The
Master's deputies to convince their slaves of the fate that awaits
them for disobedience. The local man had brought a party up to watch
two men go mad. After that sight they'll be obedient."

* *