midnight
It would be a long journey , far to the West and North -- a journey that none of his kind had ever fared back from , and he wished to go light , as all good adventurers go . Runnion annoyed him with his volubility , for the news of his good-fortune had fired the man with a reckless disregard for money , and he turned to gaming as the one natural recourse of his ilk . As the irony of fate would have it , he won what the Canadian lost , together with the stakes of various others who played for a time with him and then gave up , wagging their heads or swearing softly at the cards . It was shortly after midnight that Stark came into the place . Poleon was not too absorbed in his own fortunes to fail to notice the extraordinary ferocity and exhilaration of the saloon-keeper , nor that his face was keener , his nostrils thinner , his walk more nervous , and his voice more cutting than usual when he spoke to Runnion . `` Come here . '' `` I 'll be with you when I finish this hand , '' said the player , over his shoulder .