The boy had already come to his conclusion.  The presence of the creek had decided him.  He believed that the Mexicans, for the sake of water, had encamped somewhere along its course, and all he had to do was to follow its stream.  He marked well the spot at which he was leaving his horse, and began what he believed to be the last stage of his journey.

Ned was glad now that the undergrowth was dense.  It concealed him well, and he had acquired skill enough to go through it swiftly and without noise.  He advanced two or three miles, when he saw a faint light ahead, and he was quite sure that it came from the Mexican camp.  As he went nearer, he heard the sound of many voices, and, when he came to the edge of a thicket, belief became certainty.

The entire Mexican force was encamped in a semi-circular glade next to the creek.  The horses were tethered at the far side, and the men, eighty or a hundred in number, were lying or standing about several fires that burned brightly.  It was a cold night, and the Mexicans were making themselves comfortable.  They were justified in doing so, as they knew that there was no Texan force anywhere within a day’s ride.  They had put out no sentinels, quite sure that wandering Texans who might see them would quickly go the other way.

Ned crept up as close as he dared, and, lying on his side in a dense thicket, watched them.  Their fires were large, and a bright moon was shining.  The whole glade was filled with light.  The Mexicans talked much, after their fashion, and there was much moving about from fire to fire.  Presently the eyes of the boy watching in the bush lighted up with a gleam which was not exactly that of benevolence.

Urrea was passing before one of the fires.  Ned saw him clearly now, the trim, well-knit figure, and the handsome, melancholy face.  But he was no prisoner.  Many of the Mexicans made way for him and all showed him deference.  Ned had liked Urrea, but he could not understand how a man could play the spy and traitor in such a manner, and his heart flamed with bitterness against him.

The Mexicans continued to shift about, and when two more men came into view Ned’s heart leaped.  They were alive!  Prisoners they were, but yet alive.  He had believed that two so vivid and vital as they could not perish, and he was right.

Obed and the Ring Tailed Panther sat with their backs against the same tree.  They were unbound but the armed Mexicans were all about them, and they did not have a chance.  They were thirty yards away, and Ned could see them very plainly, yet there was a wall between him and these trusty comrades of his.

Obed and the Panther remained motionless against the tree.  Apparently they took no interest in the doings of the Mexicans.  Ned, yet seeing no way in which he could help them, watched them a long time.  He saw Urrea, after a while, come up and stand before them.  The light was good enough for him to see that Urrea’s expression was sneering and triumphant.  Again Ned’s heart swelled with rage.  The traitor was exulting over the captives.