"Well, if you do, it won't be the fault of the Mojave desert. You have courage, and so have I; but this is worse than all--Do you feel that?" "I have felt it many times before, to-day. It is said that parts of the Mojave shake all the time." "We can swear to that. Supposing a great shake came, how could we get out of this?" "We are as well here as anywhere. Let us sleep, and rise with the sun." But although he spoke confidently, almost contemptuously, he was possessed with a wild desire to spring to his feet and fight his way out of this terrible prison. He had seen a huge fish flounder in a net, and looked on callously. He should never witness such another sight without a responsive thrill of horror. Were he paralysed from crown to heel he could not be more helpless in this thicket of needles. The vast unpeopled desert had been bad enough, but it had been intoxicating liberty to this. Tired as he was, he moved his hands and feet constantly; supineness was impossible. He wondered how men felt when in prison, and vowed that when he held the law in his hands he would invent some other way of punishment. For his part he would rather be shot at once. Being young and healthy, he fell asleep after a time. When he awoke the sky was grey, the stars had gone. He shook Adan. "There is no sunrise to be seen from this place," he said, "but I am sure of the direction now. I took note of that big cactus ahead, last night--Hist!" "Dios de mi alma!" whispered Adan, his tongue rolling out. "In this place! It is worse than earthquake." Nothing was to be seen from where they stood, but from no great distance came the faint hollow rattle which strikes terror to man in the wilderness. The volume of sound was suddenly augmented: there appeared to be a duet. Immediately it was supplemented by a loud furious hissing; a moment later by a whirr and impact. "There are two, and they are fighting," whispered Adan, his eyes bulging. Roldan advanced softly to an aperture between two leaves of a cactus, then lifted his finger to his shoulder and beckoned. Adan turned mechanically in the opposite direction; but curiosity overcame him, and he joined Roldan.