"
"A shameful mutilation has been committed upon this poor defenseless
girl!" I cried in anger. "And I will make it my duty to discover and
punish the perpetrators of it."
"Ah, m'sieur. Do not act rashly, I pray of you," the woman said
seriously, placing her hand upon my arm. "Recollect you are in
Finland--where the Baron Oberg is all-powerful."
"I do not fear the Baron Oberg," I exclaimed. "If necessary, I will
appeal to the Czar himself. Mademoiselle is kept here for the reason
that she is in possession of some secret. She must be released--I will
take the responsibility."
"But you must not try to release her from here. It would mean death to
you both. The Castle of Kajana tells no secrets of those who die within
its walls, or of those cast headlong into its waters and forgotten."
Again I turned to Elma, who stood in anxious wonder of the subject of
our conversation, and had suddenly taken the old nun's hand and kissed
it affectionately, perhaps in order to show me that she trusted her.
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