"The gendarmes stripped the safe when they arrested me," said Mr. O'Hagan.
"But I had brought my jewel-case," his wife went on. "I suppose I showed my doubts in my face, for the old man said, 'The señora can trust me,' and, looking at him, I felt that I could. I put my jewel-case in his hands and told him to take what was necessary, quite expecting that he would take everything. But he examined the things as if he knew something about them, and selected my pearl necklace and two bracelets. 'The señora will not like parting with them,' he said, 'but there is no other way.' I told him he might have everything if he would save my husband, and he seemed quite hurt. Then he told me that I must not go to bed, but be ready to leave the house at any moment. He kissed my hand in the most courtly way and was gone.
"About two o'clock he came again. 'All is ready,' he said: 'come with me.' You may imagine what a state I was in. I followed him through the dark streets until we came out into the country, and there I found your father and the two men waiting for me with a spare horse. The old man told us the way to come, and here we are. I love that dear old man."
"He bribed the jailers, I suppose--jolly old soul!" said Tim.
"The Prefect's own methods," said Mr. O'Hagan. "I'm afraid the gobernador will have a bad time of it. He was responsible for me."
"And won't the jailers suffer, too?" asked Tim.
"They decamped at once, you may be sure," replied his father. "But here's Romaña back again. He's in a hurry."
"We cannot go on, señor," he said. "I crept as close as I dared to the fork, and caught sight of some men among the trees beyond. I don't know who they are, but it is not safe to proceed."
"We must go back until we come to the river. The water is very low, and we can walk up along the sand at the edge. Presently we shall come to a stream that flows down the hill-side from near Señor Mollendo's camp. We can climb up there. It is very steep and rocky, but it is the only way."
On reaching the river, the party scrambled down the bank to the bottom. In times of rain the torrent had deposited large quantities of sand in the bed, which the shrinking of the channel in the summer had left bare and dry. On this firm floor, level as a billiard table, but ascending in a gentle plane, progress was easy; but when they reached the stream of which Romaña had spoken, and had to strike up the hill-side, they found themselves in difficulties. They had to dismount and lead the horses over great ledges of quartz, polished to a dangerous slipperiness by the action of sand and water, and round huge boulders, that offered, at first sight, insuperable obstacles. Difficult as the way was for the horses, it was doubly so for the motorcycle, which had to be carried for many yards at a time, and hauled up and over sharp-edged rocks that threatened damage to its tyres. Many times they had to stop and rest. It was now midday, and very hot, and Mr. O'Hagan's party, having had no food since the night before, were hungry as well as tired.