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 CHAPTER XXX

THE PUSH FOR THE FRONTIER

"Did you call, General?" asked the captain; and as the voice came through the door I tightened the grip on my prisoner and pressed the barrel of the revolver harder against his head.

He hesitated, and when no answer was given the question was repeated.

"Yes," said Kolfort, in an unsteady tone.

"Shall I come in? Is anything the matter?" and I felt the door pushed from the outside.

"No," in the same unsteady tone. "No, I—I do not need you. You will take your men back to my house and—and wait for instructions."

"And the prisoner, General? Shall we take her with us?"

"Tell him she has killed herself," I whispered.

"There is no prisoner to take, Captain Berschoff. She has—has taken her own life. Leave that to me. Withdraw your men and send my carriage up to the door here for me."

"Very good, General. Is that all?"

"Yes, that's all." The words came with a sigh of relief. I shut the door immediately, and we stood in the dark, near the window which the two officers had broken to get into the house, and listened as the captain walked quickly to the gates. Then came a word of command, followed by the scraping of the carriage