Zita was in the lead, and it was at this moment that the panic-stricken emissaries came tumbling and fighting their way from the den.  Zita shrieked to Eva to save herself, and Eva, although unwilling to leave her, knew that now she could do nothing to save Zita, and took her only chance of escape.

As for Zita, the emissaries were too frightened to pay any attention to her.  But behind them came the iron monster, without nerves, it seemed.  The Automaton saw her and pinned her to the rock wall until she was unconscious.  Then, picking her up as though she were a feather, it carried her out to the beach.

Locke, the moment he freed himself from the hole which had so nearly been his grave, ran staggering toward the beach, for he felt instinctively that Eva and Zita were in danger.

Eva and Locke must have started at about the same time, she in her flight away from the Automaton, and Locke to find the den exit, for they met on the cliffside.

“Thank God you are safe!” exclaimed Eva.

Locke impulsively threw his arms about her and kissed her as they related their narrow escapes.

Locke resolved to follow the trail of the Automaton and to rescue Zita.  Also he had hopes of rescuing Eva’s father at the same time.  Eva wished to accompany him, but he would not think of it, and insisted that she return to Brent Rock and keep all the doors barricaded.  In fact, he followed her almost to the house and saw that she entered safely, then hurried back to the beach.

With the aid of Eva’s electric torch, which she had given him, it was no difficult task to trace the huge footsteps of the Automaton, though, one by one, the footprints of the emissaries took divergent directions, probably for the very purpose of confusing just such a pursuit.

He followed the main track, however, until he came to the banks of a small stream, and there the trail was completely lost, for the monster had stepped into the water.  Locke waded to the other bank and hunted for further tracks, but there were none to be found.  The Automaton had undoubtedly waded up-stream to the point where he had decided to dispose of Zita.

Nothing daunted, Locke started wading upstream.  This stream ran in a gully between the rocks and the cliffs on either side, which were very high.  Time and time again Locke thought of turning back for more searchers.  But he hated to return to Eva without at least some news, and therefore he persisted.

He was at last rewarded, for just as he was about to turn to the right where the stream made a bend, he thought he heard a low laugh.  He stopped dead in his tracks.  Again the sound of the broken laughter came to him.

Cautiously Locke moved slowly forward until he could see around the bend.

It was a strange sight that met his gaze.  Under an enormous overhanging rock he saw about fifteen men standing, while against the cliff he could distinguish the form of a girl.  It was undoubtedly Zita.  Sitting on a rock and quite close to her was Peter Brent.