Everyone sighed. They were still without a possible clew.
"We will rest for a minute or two," said Mr. Rand, "but we must still cover a lot of road tonight. We are out to find her if she is on the White Mountains."
And so after some conversation and advice from the forest ranger the searching party again pressed on.
CHAPTER XXVII
THE CALL OF THE HEART
"I am not the least bit afraid; in fact, I think I shall just sing to show them I feel secure," and Cora snatched up the guitar. She fingered it tenderly, then let it rest for a moment in her arms. "Did Lena say it was all right?"
"The dogs are drugged. I didn't have the heart to kill the brutes, ugly as they are. They will not awaken."
"Good! Then everything else will be all right. Oh, Helka, can you imagine we are so near freedom?"
"I never was frightened before. Whether it is the thought of meeting David, or whether it is the thought of leaving them all, I cannot say, but I am shaking from head to foot," said the queen.
"That is natural. You have been with them almost all your life. But I shall show you what real life is. This is slavery."