“They must be wanting to know what we were doing here,” suggested Gif. “Say, why can’t we pounce on ’em and make ’em prisoners? We are seven to four.”
“I’m game if you fellows are,” answered Randy readily.
A plan was hastily formed, and just as the four cadets had begun their talk with Codfish and Wesley, out of the semi-darkness pounced the Rovers and their chums.
“Give in! Give in!” was the whispered command. “Give in or you’ll get the licking of your lives!”
“Hi! Stop that!” roared one of the cadets, a lad named Morris. “Let up!”
“Do-do-don’t ch-choke me to death!” spluttered a cadet named Shamberg. “Let up, I tell you!”
“It’s the Rovers!” came from a third of the lads.
“They’ve found us out!” wailed the fourth, a fellow who was just as much of a sneak and coward as Codfish had ever been.
Surrounded and taken completely off their guard, the four cadets were speedily made prisoners. Then, almost before they knew what was happening, they were taken to the two adjoining rooms which they chanced to occupy. One of the rooms had a rather large closet which at one time had been a storeroom. It had a small window about five feet from the ground.
“I’ve got an idea,” said Jack. “Throw a mattress in here on the floor.”