arted to meet you. She must be somewhere--"

"Lenora?" Quest interrupted fiercely. "What do you mean?"

"When I got back to the camp," Laura continued rapidly, "there wasn't a
soul there except the Chinaman. He told me that Lenora had ridden off a
few minutes before to find you. We came to look for her. We found her
handkerchief on the road there, and that's her horse."

Quest did not wait for another word. He jumped a rough bush of scrub on
the right-hand side, galloped over the ground, which was already hot with
the coming fire, and followed along down the road by which Lenora had
passed. When he came to the first bend, he could hear the roar of flames
in the trees. A volume of smoke almost blinded him; his horse became
wholly unmanageable. He slipped from the saddle and ran on, staggering
from right to left like a drunken man. About forty yards along the road,
Lenora was lying in the dust. A volume of smoke rushed over her. The tree
under which she had collapsed was already afire. A twig fell from it as
Quest staggered up, and her skirt began to smoulder. He tore off his coat,
wrapped it around her, beat out the fire which was already blazing at her
feet, and snatched her into his arms. She opened her eyes for a moment.

"Where are we?" she whispered. "The fire!"

"That's all right," Quest shouted. "We'll be out of it in a moment. Hold
tight to my neck."

He braced himself for a supreme effort and ran along the pathway. His feet
were blistered with the heat; there was a great burn on one of his arms.
At last, however, he passed out of the danger zone and staggered up to
where the Professor, the Inspector and Laura were waiting.

"Say, that was a close shave," he faltered, as he laid Lenora upon the
ground. "Another five minutes--well, we won't talk about it. Let's lift
her on to your horse, Laura, and get back to the camp."

2.

The Professor laid down his book and gazed with an amiable smile towards
Quest and Lenora.

"I fear," he remarked dolefully, "that my little treatise on the fauna of
the Northern Orinoco scarcely appeals to you, Mr. Quest."

Quest, whose arm was in a sling but who was otherwise none the worse for
his recent adventure, pointed out of the tent.

"Don't you believe it, Professor," he begged. "I've been listening to
every word. But say, Lenora, just look at Laura and French!"

They all three peered anxiously out of the opening of the tent. Laura and
the Inspector were very slowly