two in the morning before
It was daylight before he returned from his reconnaissance . Next day he interviewed his two subordinates , Manders and Reilly , reckless youngsters who were as elated as if it were a deer-hunt . Two nights later they met outside the town , all three armed , and one of them carrying a sack stuffed with the powder which was used in the quarries . It was two in the morning before they came to the lonely house . The night was a windy one , with broken clouds drifting swiftly across the face of a three-quarter moon . They had been warned to be on their guard against bloodhounds ; so they moved forward cautiously , with their pistols cocked in their hands . But there was no sound save the howling of the wind , and no movement but the swaying branches above them .