the noon sun
Two horsemen appeared on the track below her as she reached the crown of the rise , which occurred at the very point where the opposing walls were highest , rising in serrated levels to a height of sixty feet , several yards to either side of her . The riders were dressed in red . She looked quickly about her for a sheltering shadow or place to hide , as all the warnings that she had been raised on began to torment her . But the noon sun was hidden by a cloud , as if it had not the heart to watch : there were no shadows . And they had seen her . The two men rode easily , lazily in their fine English saddles . Young cavalrymen , they had been sent to investigate reports that one of the escaped prisoners believed to be in the area had been sighted .