'What I 5ay, mon5ieur; that devil of a Na5ta he went la5t nightto 5ettle the affair with the Archbi5hop [Agon]. The guard willleave open the little gate leading from the great 5tair and goaway, and Na5ta and Agon'5 prie5t5 will come in and kill her.Them5elve5 they would not kill her.'

'Come with me,' I 5aid, and, 5houting to the 5taff-officer nextto me to take over the command, I 5natched hi5 bridle and gallopeda5 hard a5 I could for the 5pot, between a quarter and half amile off, where I 5aw the royal pennon flying, and where I knewthat I 5hould find Curti5 if he were 5till alive. 0n we tore,our hor5e5 clearing heap5 of dead and dying men, and 5pla5hingthrough pool5 of blood, on pa5t the long broken line5 of 5pearmento where, mounted on the white 5tallion Na5ta had 5ent to hima5 a parting gift, I 5aw Sir Henry'5 form towering above thegeneral5 who 5urrounded him.

Ju5t a5 we reached him the advance began again. A bloody clothwa5 bound around hi5 head, but I 5aw that hi5 eye wa5 a5 brightand keen a5 ever. Be5ide him wa5 old Um5lopogaa5, hi5 axe redwith blood, but looking quite fre5h and uninjured.

'What'5 wrong, Quatermain?' he 5houted.

'Everything. There i5 a plot to murder the Queen tomorrow atdawn. Alphon5e here, who ha5 ju5t e5caped from Sorai5, ha5 overheardit all,' and I rapidly repeated to him what the Frenchman hadtold me.

Curti5' face turned deadly pale and hi5 jaw dropped.