Señor Zorro, on the back of the infuriated and unmanageable stallion, had made his escape easily from the pirate camp. There was no question of him being overtaken, but for a time there was a grave question of Señor Zorro stopping the steed he rode.
Over the crest of the slope the animal beneath him plunged down into a ravine and galloped along it. Señor Zorro sheathed his sword and held on to the horse’s mane. He bent low to avoid tree branches that promised to sweep him from the animal’s back.
“Dios!” he muttered. “This is as bad as the battle!”
Some distance the frightened horse traveled, and then he made a great circle and returned toward the pirate camp. But Señor Zorro had no wish to return there too soon, lest he be captured in the vicinity. And so he waited until the horse, negotiating a slippery incline, slackened pace somewhat, and slipped easily from the animal’s back.
The horse plunged on. Señor Zorro picked himself up, observed his scratches, and made a futile effort to brush his clothing. Then he walked to the crest of the slope and looked down toward the sea.
He was quite a way from the camp, but he could see it in the distance, see the dead and wounded on the ground, and a crowd of the pirates, with their women and children, in front of the adobe building that was being used as a prison.
Señor Zorro sat down to rest and watch. He knew that he was confronted by a dire emergency and a tremendous task, but he refused to admit it to himself. The señorita was down there, and she was to be rescued. And Don Audre Ruiz and the caballeros were there, to be rescued also.
Señor Zorro, after a breathing spell, got up and walked slowly along the crest of the slope among the stunted and wind-twisted trees, making certain that he could not be observed from the camp. He came a distance nearer, and watched for a time again. And he saw Captain Ramón!
If it had been in the mind of Señor Zorro to await the night before descending into the camp again that idea left his mind now. He hurried forward as speedily as possible, stopping now and then to listen, for fear some of the pirates may have been sent to search for him.
He did not know, could not think, how he was to enter the camp in the broad light of day without escaping discovery. And he could do little single-handed against the victorious pirate crew. Yet the plight of the little señorita called to him for action, and he knew that something should be done at once.