"Like a boy."

"Good! Make up a bundle of food and clothing for a two-days' journey and I'll have a horse at the door by the time you are ready."

Ten minutes later Père Louchet, with a bundle of necessities strapped on his back, was mounted on one of his best horses which Elise had saddled for him.

"Now, where am I to ride to?" he demanded, directing his twinkling eye down upon his niece.

"Ride to Paris. Seek out Gaillard, 15 Rue Mathurins; give him this letter. That is all I ask of you."

"And you—what are you going to do?" said Père Louchet, putting the letter in his inside breast pocket with a slap on the outside to emphasize its safety.

"I ride toward Tours," replied the intrepid woman.


CHAPTER IX

PRISON BOAT NUMBER FOUR