Diego was less and less concerned. True, Gray Wing had not lost track of Zorro once, but he had not commented on what he was seeing once. And that was a good thing. It meant he didn't find anything unusual. He was starting feeling less tens and even enjoying the company of Sargent Mendoza, when suddenly everything changed.
'The tracks change here. From this point on, they are made by the same horse, carrying the same weight. But the rider is different. Not as strong', claimed Gray Wing.
As Ramón rejoiced at the thought of having enough rope to hang the both Zorro and his helper, Diego cringed inside. The mere thought that Felipe would be hanging at his side made him certain that having made him part of the whole thing had been a huge mistake, something terribly wrong. He had to save the boy, if that were the last thing he did. The remark the Indian made that the second rider moved much slower drew pictures of a very frightened Felipe surrounded by the Alcalde's men. He just couldn't allow that to happen, but he was powerless. It all was up to a fourteen year old. Diego realized he had been very stupid to trust him with something so well above Felipe's possibilities.
Felipe however was totally unaware of the danger that lingered upon his head. He was very well aware, however, that he was hungry, tired and thirsty. And the road to the old mine was still quite long. Felipe had been there once, with Alejandro, but the drive had seemed shorter to him. Perhaps, being with somebody else shortened the perception of the length of the road. Or perhaps the pain in his leg, due to the fact that Tornado was so much bigger than his own pony, was almost unbearable and made every minute as long as an hour. He took his canteen and tried and drank. It was empty. He had already drunk it all. 'Oh well, soon after the mine I should be able to find water', he though to himself. He regretted he hadn't filled it up at the river by the quicksand, when he had been there hours ago. Or was it minutes ago?
The tracks Gray Wing was following were leading right there, to the area where the quicksand was. Felipe knew the area very well, as he had helped to check the area after some of the cattle had walked right into it, so he had been able to ride right through the area, as he knew where the patches of quicksand and where the stable, firm pieces of land were. The posse members, however, didn't know the territory so well, so they were quite worried. Diego stopped Gray Wing just minutes before he fell into one of the quicksands and it was decided they would cross the river further on downstream. The caballero was happy. That would buy Felipe some more time.