“It is the pain you must have suffered that I am thinking of,” he replied. “As to the scars, I hope they will wear out in time; you must indeed have suffered horribly.”
“They burnt dreadfully for a time,” the girl answered; “but for the last two or three days I have hardly felt it, though, of course, it is very sore still.”
“Do you feel ready for breakfast, Miss Hannay?”
“Quite ready, and for a walk as long as you like afterwards. I feel quite another creature after my dip. That was one of the worst things in the prison. We had scarcely water enough to drink, and none to wash with, and, of course, no combs nor anything.”
They sat down together and ate the cold food they had brought, while Rabda and her father made their breakfast of rice.
“What has become of Mr. Wilson?” Isobel asked suddenly. “I wondered about him as I was being carried along last night, but I was too tired to talk afterwards.”
“I hope he is either safe at Allahabad by this time, or is with the troops marching up. The Zemindar's son, who came down with us as an escort, and one of his men got safely to shore also, and they went on with Wilson. When he found I was going to stay at Cawnpore to try and rescue you, he pleaded very hard that I should keep him with me in order that he might share in the attempt, but his ignorance of the language might have been fatal, and his being with me would have greatly added to the difficulty, so I was obliged to refuse him. It was only because I told him that instead of adding to, he would lessen your chance of escape, that he consented to go, for I am sure he would willingly have laid down his life to save yours.”
“I am very glad he is safe; he is very kind hearted and nice, Mr. Bathurst, and a thoroughly natural, unaffected young fellow, very loyal and stanch. I am quite sure he would have done anything he could, even at the risk of his life.”
“I like him very much, too, Miss Hannay. Before the siege I thought him a careless, happy go lucky lad, but as I got to know him well, I found he was much more than that, and he will make a good man and an excellent officer one of these days if he is spared. He is thoroughly brave without the slightest brag—an excellent specimen of the best class of public school boy.”
“And who are the troops coming up, Mr. Bathurst? How strong are they? I have heard nothing about them.”