Jump aboard as I come by--I won't be going very fast!" he cried.
Fred didn't stop to argue or to wonder why this stranger had come to his aid in such a sensational and timely fashion.

Instead, he gathered himself together and, as the car swung about and passed him, leaped in.
As he grasped the seat, the driver shot the car forward and it went roaring up the hill, pursued by a chorus of angry cries from the crowd, utterly balked of its prey.
"That was a close call for you!" said the driver, in German.
But something in his tone made Fred look at him sharply.

And then part of the mystery was solved.

For the driver was not a German at all, but plainly and unmistakably a Russian.
"Yes--but how--why-- ?" "Wait! Don't talk now!" said the driver.

"Wait till we're inside.