Although the man was courteous, Cliffe thought an attempt to run away would lead to trouble, but this was not what decided him to stay. He had been bred to business, but now deep-rooted impulses were stirring. The President and Gomez had cheated him, and he felt very sore about it, but they had, moreover, carried off and, no doubt, terrorized Evelyn. The thought of this filled him with a fierce desire to get even with them.
"Señores," he said grimly, "you not only have my word not to attempt to escape but you have my pledge to help you in every way I can."
"We start for Rio Frio to-night," the rebel answered in a significant tone.
"Good!" Cliffe said, and glanced about at the little groups of determined looking men. "I'll confess I'm curious to know how you got such good rifles," he added.
The rebel studied him keenly for a moment; and seemed satisfied.
"A countryman of yours bought and landed them for us in small quantities."
"Grahame!" Cliffe exclaimed, and laughed, for he found the situation ironically humorous. He liked Grahame, and suspected that Evelyn was interested in him; and now it was obvious that the man had helped the revolutionaries to ruin his plans.
"I know him," he said. "As a matter of fact, he's an Englishman."
"At present he is Gomez's prisoner. That is one reason we strike the first blow at Rio Frio."
"Ah! Well, if you mean to rescue him, you can rely on my doing the best I can."