Then he stepped over to Captain Saunders and whispered, “For God’s sake do what you can!”
“Rest assured that I will,” was the reply, and he left the room with the boys.
Below they saw Señor Cisneros walking slowly up and down the road, near the end of the row. He was bent nearly double, and was carefully examining the ground.
“Come here,” he finally called to those who were gathered near the door, and when they had approached, he added, “Do you see these hoof prints, rounding from the stables.”
“Yes,” they all exclaimed.
“Notice that they continue on in front of the houses about a hundred feet and then stop.”
He had walked along while calling their attention to the marks that were plain in the light-colored, sandy soil of the roadway.
“You are correct,” said Captain Saunders. “What does it mean?”
“First, let’s ascertain if they continue up the main road,” and turning, he walked in the direction of Callao again.
“Yes,” he added, “they doubled over this stretch. Notice how confused the imprints are, and now,” when they had passed the corner, “see, they are plain again on the way to the city! Those girls, Rosita and Bella, have been kidnapped.”