“I suppose it is near ten o’clock?”
“It’s a quarter to eleven.”
“It must be time to look for Mendez.”
“I think so, but there’s no certainty about it; he may be here in five minutes and not for five hours. I suspect he will delay his return for a considerable while.”
“For what cause?”
“You know there isn’t much chance of doing anything against Maroz and Ceballos for a long time yet, and there is no need, therefore, of his coming here and waiting for hours. He would have to lose sight of them for a good while, so that the conditions are likely to change very materially when he ventures on a move against them, whereas, by keeping the two under his eye until it was time to move, he could do so intelligently.”
“Furthermore, so long as he keeps beyond our reach we can’t urge him to a haste that is against his judgment.”
“Doubtless that has something to do with it, but—st!”
Both heard the same signal that had alarmed Freeman during the afternoon, when he believed he was inextricably caught. They listened for its repetition, but the next few minutes were marked by perfect stillness. Then, when they whispered their speculations about its import, they disagreed as to the point whence it came.
Freeman thought it was from the direction of the rivulet, where they had quenched their thirst, but the lieutenant was positive that it issued from a spot at right angles to that course.