“Look!” he answered, and swung me around in front of him. Then, as I peered into the darkness, a faint ray of light became visible. In a moment I perceived that it was growing bigger and brighter, and then I knew what it meant. “They’ve gone into camp, and lit a fire!” said I, pleased to have overtaken them. “Dey do’n’ know we’s coming,” chuckled Nux, from behind. But Bry stood like a statue, holding fast to my shoulders and peering over my head at the enemy. We could now see that the forest was much thinner here than at the point we had entered, and just beyond, in a little hollow where Larkin and his men were encamped, the trees grew quite scattered. “Our best plan,” said I, after a moment’s thought, “will be to creep up to them and make a sudden attack.” “One, two, free, fou’,” counted Bry, in his deep voice. “No use to ’tack, Mars Sam. Dey got guns, an’ kill us all quick.” “We have our revolvers,” I suggested, rather disappointed at his prediction. “Nux an’ I _might_ hit somefin’, an’ we might not,” said Bry. “If we hit somefin’ it might be a man, an’ it might not.” This was discouraging, and it called to mind the fact that I was not much used to fire-arms myself. “Still, I don’t mean to go back without doing something to recover our gold,” said I. “Wait!” whispered the black, and swung me around back of him again. How he managed this I do not know, for the path was very narrow. Next moment he disappeared, as if the earth had swallowed him up. Nux gave a laugh, and sat down upon the ground. After a few moments I followed suit, squatting in the place I had been standing, for even from that distance I could see by the flickering firelight the dim forms of the robbers gathered around it. And now I perceived that Bry’s decision was wise. We were too far from camp to expect assistance in case of an emergency, even if our friends succeeded in finding the entrance to the jungle that was so cleverly concealed under the bush. So whatever was to be done must be done by ourselves—a boy and two black men against four desperate and well-armed villains, who would stop at no crime to retain the gold they had stolen. Evidently they did not fear pursuit now, for we could hear the murmur of their voices as they laughed and shouted at one another. We waited in silence for a long time, and as the gloom of the silent forest became intensified by the distant light I began to feel for the first time a thrill that was akin to fear. Finally I noticed a black body wriggling its way toward us through the brush like some huge snake, and a moment later Bryonia stood before me. “I creep close an’ hear what dey say, Mars Sam,” he reported. “Dey goin’ watch all night. I watch, too. Tomorrow maybe we catch ’em. You an’ Nux go sleep.”