midnight
Thrilling hours those were . It is no wonder that , schooled by their events , young as we were , we put away childish things . That night while we slept things happened of which we knew nothing for many years . There was no moon and the glaring yellow daytime plain was full of gray-edged shadows , under the far stars of a midnight blue sky , as Esmond Clarenden took the same trail that we had followed in the afternoon . On to the village of Agua Fria , black and silent , he rode until he came to the church door . Here he dismounted , and , quickly securing his horse , he entered the building . The chill midnight wind swept in through the open door behind him , threatening to blot out the flickering candles about the altar .