midnight
I shall be asleep on that couch outside the door and will come if called , so the sahib would better not lock the door but should call loud in case of need , because I also have been long awake and may sleep heavily . '' `` Suppose I walk the streets all night ? '' said I. `` Would n't that foil them ? '' `` Nay , sahib , but the reverse ; for if Yussuf Dakmar should miss you after midnight he would go in search of you , with those five in turn tracking him . And as for finding you , that would be a simple matter , for every night thief and beggar waiting for the dawn would give attention to such a big man as you and would report your movements . All six would come on you in the dark and would kill you surely . Then , as if that were not bad enough , having searched you they would learn that the letter in your possession is not the right one ; and the trail of the right one would be that much easier to detect . ''