It reached out its long wooden arm as if to grasp Paul and with another shudder he turned his back to it.
The two continued down one side of the Place d'Armes in the shade of magnolias and cypresses that drooped over the wooden fence.

As they passed they heard the sound of a shot.
"Somebody in the city fighting with a rifle or pistol instead of a knife," said Paul.
But Henry stood motionless and silent for a moment or two.

He had distinctly felt the rush of air on his face as a bullet passed by.

He was seeking to see whence the shot had come and he thought he caught a glimpse of a figure among the cypresses.
"No, Paul," he exclaimed, "that shot was aimed at me!" He sprang over the wooden fence and was followed by Paul.

They searched diligently among the trees but found nothing.