“Who goes there?” called the sentry.
“I’ve lost my way,” said Bessie, trusting to her voice to make him understand that she was not to be driven away. “Is this the fort? I’d like to see some officer, if you please.”
“Wait there! I’ll pass the word,” said the sentry.
And in a few minutes a young lieutenant came toward her.
“Bless my soul!” he said, “What are you doing here, young lady! Come with me–you can explain inside.”
And, once inside the fort, the first person she saw was Charlie Jamieson!
CHAPTER XIV
AT THE FORT
“Bessie King!” he exclaimed amazed. “What on earth, are you doing here? And where is Trenwith?”
“I don’t know,” said Bessie. She felt safe and for a moment she was on the verge of collapsing completely. But then she remembered that not her own fate alone, but that of the others whom she loved and who had been so good to her depended upon her. And, in a few quick words, she told the story of the accident to the Columbia, with the treachery of Billy Trenwith and the subsequent appearance of Holmes and his men.