. Her father....

* * * * *

Half an hour later he roused her as gently as he could. It was
helplessness, as much as anything else, that had made him leave her
alone; but a woman needs to weep now and then. And Paula assuredly had
excuse.

"Here's a cup of coffee," he said practically, "which you must drink.
You can't have had anything to eat all day. Have you?"

That question had haunted him too. She had been a prisoner in
Ribiera's house for half an hour, possibly more. And Ribiera had in
his possession, and used, a deadly, devilish poison from some unknown
noxious plant. Its victim took the poison unknowingly, in a morsel of
food or a glass of water or of wine. And for two weeks there was no
sign of evil. And then the poison drove its victim swiftly mad--unless
the antidote was obtained from Ribiera. And Ribiera administered the
antidote with a further dose of poison.

If Paula had eaten one scrap of food or drunk one drop of water while
Ribiera's captive....

She understood. She looked up suddenly, and read the awful anxiety in
his eyes.

"No. Nothing." She caught her breath and steadied herself with an
effort of the will. "I understand. You tried not to let me fear. But I
ate nothing, touched nothing. I have not that to fear, at least."

"Drink this coffee," said Bell, smiling. "Ribiera was a luxurious
devil. There's canned stuff and so on in a locker. He was prepared for
a forced landing anywhere. Flares and rockets will do us no good, but
there are a pair of machetes and a sporting rifle with shells. We
don't need to die for a bit, anyhow."

* * * * *

Paula obediently took the coffee. He watched her anxiously as she
drank.

"Now some soup," he urged, "and the rest of this condensed stuff. And
I've found some maps and there's a radio receiving outfit if--"

Paula managed to smile.

"You want to know," she said, "if I can endure listening to it. Yes.
I--I should not have given way just now. But I can endure anything."

Bell still hesitated, regarding her soberly.

"I've heard," he said awkwardly, "that in Brazil the conventions...."

She waited, looking at him with her large eyes.

"I hoped," said Bell, still more unhappily, "to find this place
Moradores, where you said you had some relatives. I hoped to find it
before dark. But before I landed I knew I'd missed it and couldn't
hope to locate it to-night. I thought--"

"You thoug