The young man turned to give his friends a calm, smiling look of triumph, as he walked towards the window to glance at his steed. The next moment his countenance fell. For he had seen the gate from where he stood, and there, as if ready to accompany him wherever he went alone, was the chief guard, already mounted, and behind them, ready too and well-armed, were half a dozen men.
“Ah!” said the doctor, with a sigh. “I feared there would be something like this.”
“Yes,” said the professor; “they have us safely, and do not mean to let us go.”
“The young chief must have left word,” said Frank bitterly, as he ground his teeth.
“Of course, then, you give it up now?” said the professor quickly.
“No,” said Frank firmly, “I am going to start—at once.”
The lips of both his friends parted as if to utter a protest, but there was something so determined in Frank’s eyes, so stern and set about the lines of his mouth, that they forbore, and the doctor spoke gently—
“Very well, Frank, lad,” he said gravely; “you have had far more experience among these people in the city than I have, and you know the need of caution. Take care; a slip may mean destruction now we have climbed so near the pinnacle of our hopes. I will say no more than this—Go, and Heaven protect you.”
“Yes,” said the professor earnestly, and he held out his hand.
Frank grasped it firmly, and that of the doctor, who took his left, all three standing silently for a few minutes.