Be careful of him-he possesses a pedigree which fills four large volumes and runs back to the royal stud which The Great King presented to the emperor Diocletian after the victories of Galerius in Persia. When you are through with him return him to the royal stables of the King of Karlova, from which he was stolen. Mount, Stefan, and ride back to Demia."

The royal chauffeur hesitated. The Rider raised his revolver until the dark hole of the muzzle was on a line with Stefan's diaphragm.

"Hasten, Stefan," he admonished, and Stefan hastened.

The Rider watched the chauffeur until the latter had covered several hundred yards of the road toward Demia; then he climbed into the driver's seat and started the car once more upon its interrupted journey.

As they passed the road leading to Vitza, and the princess realized that their captor was keeping to the Roman road in the direction of the border the gravity of her predicament was borne in upon her. At first she had viewed the affair as one might view a pleasurable adventure which broke the dull monotony of existence; but as the minutes passed and gave her opportunity for reflection she saw all too plainly the grave dangers of her position. Her one thought now was of escape; and the wild nature of the country through which the road passed, together with the many steep ascents which often brought the car almost to a dead stop, offered her every hope of success.

And so it was that near the summit of a particularly bad grade, while the chugging of the exhaust and the grinding of the gears obliterated all lesser sounds, the two doors of the tonneau opened simultaneously. The Princess Mary leaped lightly out upon the right and Carlotta essayed the same feat upon the left. All would have gone well and their escape, doubtless, been assured had Carlotta been favored by the advantages of an American education, which teaches one many things that may be found in no text book or in the curriculum of any college.

But Carlotta's education had been sadly neglected, in some respects at least, which may account for the fact that she stepped from the slowly moving car with her face to the rear. The result was only what might have been expected; and Carlotta, to avoid the wheels, rolled quickly to one side and just far enough to come within the range of the tail of the bandit's left eye. It was just a glimpse he got of something moving in the road behind him; but it was enough to bring his head around and reveal to his view the scrambling figure of Carlotta as she staggered to her feet and bolted down the hill in the direction from which they had just come.

Another glance showed the brigand that the tonneau was empty. The car stopped with a jerk, and almost in the same instant The Rider was in the road, his revolver in his hand, and his quick eyes piercing the night for a sign of his escaped prisoners.

The Princess Mary, crouching close to the rocky side of the cut through which the road passed at this point, saw the car stop, and guessing that their escape had been discovered, turned and ran after the fleeing Carlotta.

She had covered but a few yards when there came from behind her a sharp, peremptory command to halt. The Princess Mary, unaccustomed to obeying commands of any nature, ignored this one. It was repeated once, immediately followed by the report of a shot. The Princess Mary came to a dead stop, and turned upon her pursuer. Her little chin was high in the air, her eyes flashed; but her lower lip trembled just a trifle as she faced the man who now came running up.

"How dare you!" she cried. "How dare you fire upon-" and then she hesitated. For the moment she had forgotten that she was only Miss Bass of America.

Carlotta, turning at the sound of the shot, came quickly back to the side of her mistress. The bandit looked at the two, and even in the darkness Princess Mary thought that she detected the shadow of a smile beneath his black mask.

"I am very sorry, Miss Bass," he said; "but really you mustn't try that again-it's awfully dangerous, leaping from a moving car. Permit me," and he offered his arm to escort her back to the machine.

The girl ignored the little gallantry, and very stiffly and haughtily walked back up the hill, while the bandit followed at her elbow. He made her take the seat beside him this time, while Carlotta resumed her place in the tonneau.

"It will be safer thus," he explained. "I should hate to have you risk your life again in an attempt to escape, and I can watch you better here. You'll have to act as hostage, you know. I'm sure your mother won't try to get away again as long as I have you safely beside me. Hadn't you better put this robe around your shoulders? the night air is a trifle chill," and he turned and attempted to place the robe for her.

"I do not wish a robe," snapped the Princess Mary. "You will kindly confine yourself to your proper role -that of brigand and captor. You will get your ransom money, and in the mean time you will oblige me by not speaking to me-I have no desire to converse with a thief and a murderer."

"You mustn't be too bard on me, Miss Bass," expostulated The Rider; "I haven't killed anyone for a week, really. You can't imagine how hard times have been, and the last one not only bled all over me but when I came to empty his pockets I found that he didn't possess the price of a bottle of good wine. You have no idea, Miss Bass, how discouraging this business is at times."

Princess Mary shuddered. The fellow was a hopeless brute. Carlotta, in the tonneau; trembled.