midnight
It was an Arizona night of countless stars , with that peculiar soft , velvety atmosphere that belongs to no other land or time . In the distance the jagged , violet line of mountains rose in silhouette against a sky not many shades lighter , while nearer the cool moonlight flooded a land grown magical under its divine touch . The ranger rode with a limp ease that made for rest , his body shifting now and again in the saddle , so as to change the weight and avoid stiffness . It must have been well past midnight that he caught the long breath of a sigh behind him . The trail had broadened at that point , for they were now down in the rolling plain , so that two could ride abreast in the road . Bucky fell back and put a sympathetic hand on the shoulder of the boy . `` Plumb fagged out , kid ? ''