intuition,
that the island authorities would actually acclaim them for the tidings
they brought. And then, he would find those grave brown eyes of hers
fixed on his in agonized inquiry. What of the others? Why had he
betrayed his trust? Dom Corria de Sylva had sent him ashore in advance
of any among the little band of fugitives. Marcel and Domingo were
outside the pale. Their lives, at least, were surely forfeit when
recaptured. It was not a prayer but a curse that Hozier muttered when
Marcel whispered words he did not understand, but whose obvious meaning
was that now the girl must be carried to the convict's hut, since they
were losing time, and time was all-important.

So they strode on, across ground that continued to rise in gentle
undulations. Even in his present frenzied mood, Hozier noticed that
they were following the right bank of a rivulet, the catamaran being
beached on the same side of its cove-like estuary. Progress was rather
difficult. They were skirting a wood, and the trailers of a great
scarlet-flowered bean and a climbing cucumber smothered the ground,
canopied the trees, and swarmed over the rocks. He could not
distinguish these hindrances in the darkness, but he soon found that he
must walk warily. As for the effort entailed by his forlorn burden he
did not give a thought to it until Marcel indicated that he must stand
fast. The Brazilian went on, leaving Hozier breathless. Evidently he
went to warn the inhabitants of a wretched hut, suddenly visible in the
midst of a patch of maize and cassava, that there were those at hand
who needed shelter.

A dog barked--Marcel whistled softly, and the animal began to whimper.
The Brazilian vanished. Hozier still held Iris in his arms; his heart
was beating tumultuously; his throat ached with the labor of his lungs.
His straining ears caught rustlings among the grass and roots, but
otherwise a solemn peace brooded over the scene. Just beyond the hut,
which was shielded from the arid hill by a grove of curiously contorted
trees, the inner heights of the island rose abruptly. Something that
resembled a column of cloud showed behind the rugged sky-line of the
land. Even while he waited there, he saw a glint of light on its
eastern side. He fancied that under stress of emotion and physical
weakness his eyes were deceiving him; but the line of golden fire grew
brighter and more definite. It was broken but unwavering, and black
shadows began t