It read, "Come at once--important." Disappointed as it left him, it determined his action; and as the train steamed out of San Luis, it for a while diverted his attention from the object of his pursuit.

In any event, his destination would have been Skinner's or the Hollow, as the point from which to begin his search.
He believed with Sister Seraphina that the young girl would make her direct appeal to her brother; but even if she sought Mrs.Barker, it would still be at some of the haunts of the gang.

The letter to the Lady Superior had been postmarked from "Bald Top," which Key knew to be an obscure settlement less frequented than Skinner's.

Even then it was hardly possible that the chief of the road agents would present himself at the post-office, and it had probably been left by some less known of the gang.

A vague idea, that was hardly a suspicion, that the girl might have a secret address of her brother's, without understanding the reasons for its secrecy, came into his mind.