Just like before, when I concocted our plans to assault the town of Buenavista in Boac, I waited for the scouts to return with their report before finalizing our battle plan for Torrijos.
I sat in the conference room of the presidencia, along with the officers and cadets. The lamps above flickered gently, casting long shadows across the table. The mood was heavy with fatigue.
Señor Alcántara had managed to return before sundown, and with him was Capitan Roque. The latter was understandably overjoyed when he learned that his son had not only survived the battle but had performed admirably in the assault. As I had ordered, Roque had brought with him a hundred recruits—half of the newly trained batch of 200 from Boac.
Also seated among the audience were Teniente Medina and Sargento Ortega. I had requested the Cazadores to join us in tomorrow's planned attack, owing to their prior knowledge of the terrain and defenses around Torrijos. They had agreed without hesitation.
