midnight
Then it occurred to him that possibly the firing he and Eddie had heard earlier in the day far down among the foothills might have meant the extermination of the Americans from El Orobo . `` Well , I 'll be next then , '' mused Billy , and wormed closer to the huts . His eyes were on the alert every instant , as were his ears ; but no sign of that which he sought rewarded his keenest observation . Until midnight he lay in concealment and all that time the mourners continued their dismal wailing . Then , one by one , they entered their huts , and silence reigned within the village . Billy crept closer . He eyed each hut with longing , wondering gaze .