Page:Gaston Leroux--The bride of the sun.djvu/210

196 Dick, exploring the place, fell over a crouching figure, and put all his pent-up rage into throwing the man. Half strangled and trembling with fear, the captured half-breed explained that he was the owner of the house. He had been roistering in the city, but the threat of death sobered him and loosened his tongue.

Just after eleven o'clock, a closed carriage had driven up to the door. He did not know who had entered it, but it had been escorted to the station by all the women and the Red Ponchos. This he knew for certain, because he had followed them out of curiosity. At the station, the man they called Huascar had given him some money, telling him to go away and not to return to the house before daylight.

"The blackguard!" growled Dick. "He knew we would come here when he didn't turn up! Come on! To the station, quick!"

When they reached it, it was with the greatest difficulty that they finally unearthed an employee asleep on a bench. He made no secret of the fact that a large number of Indians had left at a quarter past eleven, in a special train ordered by Oviedo Runtu "for his servants." No, they could not get another special train that night for all the money in the world. If they wanted to get to Sicuani as well, they would have to