"And I"m going with you," Noll added.
"You, too, Overton?" demanded Lieutenant Greg Holmes.
"I can"t," groaned Hal Overton.
"Oh, I beg your pardon, old chap," gasped Holmes, overcome with the thought of the humiliation he had needlessly caused this gallant young brother officer.
"I"m under charges, you know," remarked Hal, with a wan smile.
"Confound that Ruggles!" broke impetuously from Holmes"s lips. "I"d almost like to burn him at a stake."
"Yes; it"s tough," cried Prescott, "to be deprived of the help of one of the bravest, quickest-witted men in the United States Army!"
This heart-felt praise served as some balm to Hal"s wounded, grief-stricken spirits. He would have given anything he possessed to join this long dash to save, if possible, two imperiled American girls.
"And there are other American women there to-night," added Hal brokenly.
None of the time was lost in talk, however, for the young officers who were to go were now busy looking to their weapons and ammunition, their canteens of water and other needed supplies.
It was unavoidable that the news should have leaked out among the soldiers now in camp.
The four young officers started soon, each giving Hal a silent, soul-felt grip of the hand before starting.
"Now, why the d.i.c.kens ain"t Lieutenant Overton going?" demanded Sergeant Kelly in wonder.
"Don"t you know?" demanded a corporal. "Lieutenant Overton is in camp, under charges."
"What are ye talking about, man?" demanded Kelly incredulously.
"Oh, it"s the truth," insisted the corporal. "It"s a frame-up, I am certain, but the prisoner, Ruggles, claimed that he gave the lieutenant five thousand dollars last night to fix it to let him, Ruggles, escape the consequences of smuggling arms over the border."
"What a silly lie!" sputtered Sergeant Kelly. "And did your captain believe a fool"s fairy-tale like that?"
"He wouldn"t have," replied the corporal, "only the lieutenant was searched, and the money was found hidden in his revolver holster."
"In the holster, say ye?" demanded Sergeant Kelly, with a flash of his eyes. The next words he uttered came in a shout:
"Binns, ye lop-sided shadow of a rookie!" he bellowed.
"Here, Sarge," answered a soldier, across a row of tents. "And what"s got on your temper, Sarge?"
"Come here and ye"ll be finding out!" growled Kelly, making a grab for the soldier. He caught that mystified fighting man, and, without a word, dragged him before Captain Foster.
"Salute the captain, ye deaf-mute!" ordered Kelly, letting go of the soldier and bringing his own hand up smartly to the brim of his cap.
"What"s the meaning of these lightning tactics, Sergeant?" demanded Captain Foster.
"The meaning is, sir," ran on Kelly rapidly, "that I want this man to tell you something."
"What is it, my man?" demanded the captain.
"I don"t know, sir," confessed Private Binns. "You"ll have to ask Sergeant Kelly, sir."
"Binns," exploded Kelly, "you and me was standing at the stern on the captured motor boat for a spell, last night."
"We was--_were_," admitted Binns.
"Tell the captain what we saw when we looked down into the cabin, out of the darkness."
"Why we saw Ruggles handling Lieutenant Overton"s revolver, in its holster," continued Private Binns.
"Now, what did the fellow Ruggles, do with the holster?" continued Sergeant Kelly severely.
"We saw him open the flap."
"And then?"
"Ruggles closed it again," stated Binns.
"Did we see him put anything in the holster?" cried Sergeant Kelly.
"Yes," admitted the soldier.
"What did it look like?"
"Paper--perhaps money," replied Binns slowly.
"D"ye think ye begin to see a light, Captain?" flashed Sergeant Kelly triumphantly. Then he turned to the soldier once more with:
"What did Ruggles do next?"
"He put the holster down and got up."
"How did he look?" pressed Kelly.
"Pleased, he looked. He grinned and muttered something quickly."
"Now, all that, Captain, sir, I"ll swear to myself," continued the sergeant, turning in triumph to Captain Foster.
"Why didn"t you tell me all this before?" demanded Captain Foster, while Hal stood by, all a-quiver, yet too full of emotion to speak.
"Because, sir, "twas only a minute ago that I knew there"d be anything in our news. Binns and myself thought that Ruggles, when he picked up the lieutenant"s revolver, had some notion of blowing out his brains.
Had he taken the gun out of the holster we"d have jumped down into the cabin and taken it away from him. When he put the holster down, we concluded the fellow had only picked it up in a moment"s curiosity. Then Binns and meself saw the lieutenant coming, and stepped away. I even thought, at the time, sir, that the paper was something that Ruggles had disturbed in the holster."
"Come with me to the guard-tent," ordered Captain Foster. "You, too, Mr.
Overton!"
"Ah, ye scoundrel, I"m sorry I didn"t throw ye overboard last night!"