noon
Then she turned , mounting the steps , pensively ; and , in the doorway , paused an instant , looking back at him over her shoulder . * * * * * And all that night , lying close to the verge of slumber , I heard Sir George pacing the stony yard under the great stars ; while the riflemen , stretched beside the hearth , snored heavily , and the death-watch ticked in the wall . At dawn we three were afield , nosing the Sacandaga trail to count the tracks leading to the north -- the dread footprints of light , swift feet which must return one day bringing to the Mohawk Valley an awful reckoning . At noon we returned . I wrote out my report and gave it to Sir George . We spoke little together . I did not see Magdalen Brant again until they bade me adieu .