The long ride was uneventful, except for the usual bustle at the stopping places and the interest which this aroused. It was at one of these that the Princess procured a newspaper. She was eager to learn of what had happened since she had left Padina, and anxiously scanned the columns for news of her country. Suddenly, she uttered a loud exclamation of distress, and Helène, startled, saw her lean back and point to the sheet lying spread in her lap.
“Read this, Helène,” she cried, pointing to the headline: “News from Roumelia.” Helène took the paper and read:
“From Sophia, under date October —, we received the following communication, which evidently escaped the strict censorship. The Divane met on Saturday, October —, and was attended by a majority of the members. The meeting, presided over by Demeter Sturdza, was one of intense excitement throughout. M. Flava, after making an impassioned address, moved a resolution demanding the expulsion of all the remaining officials of the old régime, unless they took the oath of the new constitution. It asked that the members of the royal family be placed under arrest and tried under the laws as administered by the Triumvirate. The resolution also called for plenary authority for himself and his two colleagues, MM. Balescu and Calorasi. It was carried by virtually the unanimous vote of the assembly, and President Sturdza was compelled to sign the warrants presented. Great excitement still prevails in the capital.
“Reports from Padina, so far unconfirmed, state that the Princess Marie-Louise has disappeared with the Comtesse Rondell, her lady-in-waiting. It is said that the disappearance of the two ladies was connected with the arrival of a party of some forty foreigners, who came to Padina ostensibly on a prospecting visit to oil-lands and for the purchase of horses. These people bought a number of blood animals and disbursed fabulous sums of money in other directions. The strangers had left Padina on the very Sunday on which the absence of the Princess was discovered. The borders are being closely guarded, and no one is permitted to leave the country without a passport from the Committee of Safety.
“A reward has been offered for the capture of the Princess, dead or alive. Colonel A——, commanding at Padina, has been arrested, and the Mayor and Chief of Police of the town have been suspended. They are suspected of being implicated in the plot for the abduction of the ladies.
“The Bulgarian government has ordered the mobilization of the Third and Fifth Divisions of the army. The Roumelian garrison along all the borders has been strengthened. All officers suspected of royalist tendencies have been imprisoned. The country is again under martial law.”
Helène turned deathly pale as she came to the last words. She looked at the Princess and found her leaning against the window her head bowed on her arms.
“Oh, my darling,” she cried sobbingly, embracing her friend, “what would have become of you had you remained in Padina? What has become of all our friends?”
“God alone knows,” murmured the Princess. “We should have shared their fates if Mr. Morton had not come to us when he did. I cannot forgive myself.”
They comforted each other and found relief in tears. But they were free—free—free—and their hearts filled with gratitude for the kind fate that had sent Morton to them.