midnight
Everything conspired against poor Tom . The bright moonlight , the broad level stretch of plain , the fact that he was on foot , and his pursuers , besides being well mounted , were among the most skillful riders of the Southwest , made his situation about as desperate as it is possible to imagine . A few minutes later the fugitive paused again , but this time it was not necessary that he should apply his ear to the ground . The sounds of the mustangs ' hoofs came to him very plainly through the midnight air , and as he looked around he half expected to see the shadowy figures of the horsemen plunging forward in the gloom toward him ! Nothing was to be seen , however , of them , and , feeling that the situation was becoming desperate , he changed his course again , his purpose being simply to get by the approaching marauders without caring in what direction he went . Had he been five minutes earlier he might have succeeded , but he was just that much too late . He was stealing forward in his cautious manner , with the sound of the horses ' hoofs growing more distinct every second , when , sure enough , the figure of an Indian horseman suddenly came in sight , bearing down upon him as straight as an arrow .