‘Drink this, Henri, and listen to me. I have come here expressly to find you and save you, and you must trust yourself to me. The police shall not take you. They are waiting by Shanty Hill, and I know a secret outlet by Miners’ Gulch. But we must leave this pestiferous atmosphere at once, or it may be fatal to both of us.’
He clung to her like a child to its mother.
‘You can save me!’ he exclaimed. ‘Oh, my good angel! why did I ever desert you?’
‘Hush! Don’t speak of that now. Think of nothing excepting the best means to get out of this dreadful place. Drink some more brandy, and inhale this ammonia. That is right. Pull yourself together, and follow me closely. I will go first, and lead the way.’
She pulled him forward as she spoke, and mechanically he followed her. Step by step they went, very slowly and cautiously at first, and then faster, as the dusky twilight spread itself out, and the gleams of sunshine penetrated at intervals the dense foliage, and turned its neutral tints into living green. On they went, she in front with her staff and revolver, and he, behind, only half comprehending what had occurred to him, until they reached the thicket which abutted on the Sans Souci plantation, where he sank down upon the grass, with a low moan of exhaustion. Lizzie was busy with her wallet directly. She had anticipated that as soon as the excitement was over he would succumb to the strain he had passed through—for the Spanish Creoles have not strong constitutions, and had provided the necessary remedies against it. It was some little time before Henri de Courcelles fairly understood what had happened to him, and then his gratitude knew no bounds.
‘Am I really safe, and with you?’ he murmured. ‘What have I done to deserve such goodness at your hands?’
‘You are clear of that terrible swamp, Henri; but you are not by any means safe yet; and if you would be, you must follow out my instructions to the letter. See here! I have an old cloak and sombrero which belonged to my poor father. I left them under this tree when I entered the swamp. We will wait here quietly until it is a little darker, and then you must put them on, and come home to the bungalow with me, and I will conceal you there until you can find some means of leaving San Diego.’
‘But how will that be possible, Lizzie? The bills must be out by this time, putting a price upon my head, and every nigger in the island will be turned into an amateur detective, in the hope of being able to claim the reward.’
‘Oh, don’t let us think of that now!’ replied Lizzie wearily. ‘The chief thing at present is to restore your vitality. It is a blessing you are still alive, Henri. Eat and drink what I have brought for you, and thank God you can do it in safety. Nothing will harm you here.’
‘And you actually came in search of me, alone and unprotected?’ he said, looking at her with the deepest admiration. ‘You braved the dangers of this awful place,—ran the risk of a terrible death, and all for me—for me, who have treated you so badly! Oh, Lizzie,’ continued Henri de Courcelles, seizing her hand, ‘if the devotion of the life you have rescued can atone to you, it will.’