What he saw caused him to stare.
Stella was looking over his head with an expression of horror on her face. Her wide, staring eyes were filled with an unspeakable horror.
Her hand was poised in mid-air, just as if she had been going to put something into her mouth, when the action was arrested by the sight of something that froze her with terror.
"Stella, what's ther matter?" Bud managed to blurt out.
Stella's lips moved, but no sound came from them. She was too frightened to speak.
Then Bud, observing the direction in which she was looking, turned his head.
In an instant he was on his feet. He had become very pale, and his hand shook as he reached slowly toward his holster.
Standing behind him was a creature such as he never had seen before.
It was a man of great stature, clad entirely in black, over which was thrown a long, black cloak.
But the horror of the creature was the face. Out of an expressionless mask of silver, without nose or mouth, gleamed a pair of fierce, black eyes, that twinkled maliciously. Midway of the face were two holes, nostrils through which he breathed.