“I didn’t realize,” Phil said half laughing, “how queer it must have seemed to him. Well, I’m going up and make a clean breast of it.
“Have you any suspicion as to the identity of the man I shot?” Phil suddenly asked.
“I thought at once of Espinosa,” Sydney answered, “but I’m not sure; he talked in a voice that was not familiar, but that may have been feigned. Think of it,” he exclaimed, “those masked men are all in the employ of our government. They have taken the oath of allegiance and yet they are plotting to massacre our soldiers.”
“It seems queer,” Phil exclaimed in a puzzled voice, “that the meeting and Tillotson’s disappearance should happen the same evening. Do you suppose it was only a coincidence?”
Sydney shook his head.
“Let’s get Captain Blynn to unravel that,” he answered. “He’s not half as clever as some believe, not to have discovered in six months what we have in less than two days. But remember, we promised Señorita Maria to say nothing of her share in the work.”
An hour later the lads had laid their startling discoveries before the judge-advocate.
“How many of these men did you count?” he asked excitedly, after he had listened with rising indignation to the account of the Katipunan meeting and the accusation against Rodriguez.
“About forty, I should say,” Phil answered.
“I don’t understand,” the captain exclaimed aloud, “why Espinosa has not told me of the existence of this society. Of course I knew it was active elsewhere, but I had no idea they would dare plot against us within our lines.”