Ferende started violently and turned pale. "No!" she cried, so loud that all three of them glanced apprehensively at the windows. Then lowering her voice:

"Don't ever think of such a thing again. It's too dangerous. She must escape."

"But the Effendi would kill us even for that."

"It must be done in such a way that he will never suspect us."

CHAPTER XXX
A HERO AND A SIX-INCH SHELL

"We must yust take our chances," said Lindbohm. "How far is it from here to the blockhouse?"

Curtis was lying on his stomach behind a rock, with his rifle beside him.

"About sixty or seventy rods," he replied.

"Rods? What is a rod?" asked Lindbohm.