h.

"Get back," he said after this was over. "You must go before the
Commissary for judgment. The woman is required in Moscow, but we shall
deal summarily with the foreigner and Malinkoff, also the little thief,
when we find him."

He addressed the chauffeur.

"I shall sit by your side, and if you do not carry out my instructions I
shall shoot you through the head, little pigeon," he said. "Get down and
start your machine."

CHAPTER XVIII

THE MONASTERY OF ST. BASIL THE LEPER

He gave an order to the soldiers, and the barrier was removed, then he
struck a match and lit a flare which burnt a dazzling red flame for half
a minute.

"A signal," said Malinkoff, "probably to notify our capture."

A few minutes later, with a soldier on either footboard, and the officer
sitting beside the chauffeur, the car sped through the night, checking
only before it came to the cross-roads which Malinkoff had sought for.
Turning to the left, the car swung into a road narrower and less
comfortable for the passengers.

"I wonder if they will catch our brave friend," said the girl.

"They will be sorry if they do," replied Malcolm dryly. "Cherry will not
be caught as we were."

Ahead of them and to the right apparently, on a hill by their height, a
dozen fires were burning, and Malinkoff judged that the camp they were
approaching was one of considerable size. He guessed it was a
concentration camp where the Reds were preparing for their periodical
offensive against the Ukraine. It must be somewhere in this district
that the Polish Commissioners were negotiating with the Supreme
Government--an event which had set Moscow agog.

An eerie experience this, riding through the dark, the figures of the
soldier guards on either footboard gripping to the posts of the car.
Bump, bump, bump it went, swaying and jolting, and then one of the
guards fell off. They expected him to jump on the footboard again, for
the auto was going at a slow pace, but to their surprise he did not
reappear. Then a similar accident happened to the man on the other
footboard. He suddenly let go his hold and fell backwards.

"What on earth----" said Malcolm.

"Look, look!" whispered the girl.

A foot and a leg had appeared opposite the window, and it came from the
roof of the car. Then another foot, and the bulk of a body against the
night.

"It's Cherry!" whispered the girl.

Swiftly he passed the window and came to the side of the officer, whose