There was no other man." Percival looked hard into Manuel Crust's bloodshot eyes.

An appalling thought had suddenly flashed into his mind.

Many seconds passed before he dared to open his lips.

As if by divine revelation the situation lay bare before him,--the whole Machiavelian scheme as conceived by Manuel.
Sancho Mendez was to be sacrificed! Even as he stood there speechless, the plan began to work toward its well-calculated end.

Manuel's friends started to harangue the crowd.
They were growling hoarse invectives, shaking their fists in the direction of the wood, fanning the pent-up fury of the mob into a whirlwind that would sweep everything before it.