I was more shaken by the sight of blood trickling out of that little hole than I have been at the sight of gory accidents.
I suggested that we both undertake an immediate search of the shack. If the bat was still inside, we would find it and kill it.
He shook his head and moaned again. "It's no use. They can't stand light. As soon as you lit the lantern, it got out."
He finally arose, bathed and bandaged the puncture on his foot and sank back on his cot. He left the lantern lit and he lay there with his eyes wide open. He looked so haunted and unhappy I wished I could say something to cheer him up, but for the life of me I couldn't think of anything that made sense.
I stayed awake for a while trying to figure out how the bat had gotten in. But I had watched Hubbers inspect the interior of the closely-screened building inch by inch a few hours before and I couldn't think of a single corner or chink that he might have missed. Finally sleep overcame me again.
When I got up the next morning, my host was sitting on the veranda. He looked even worse than he had the night before. His face was ghastly, really grey and drawn, and his eyes appeared feverish. I knew without asking that he hadn't slept again after the vampire's attack.
After breakfast I suggested that he ask the pharmaceutical company to transfer him to some other locality.
"I haven't enough strength left to go out in the jungle with the gathering parties," he said. "And there isn't anything else."
He said nothing more. His tense agitation of the previous day appeared to be changing into a sort of fatalistic apathy. I felt seriously concerned about him and I wished I might help, but I didn't know what I could do.
The party I was to accompany arrived by mid-morning and soon afterwards I bid Cecil Hubbers goodbye. He wished me good luck and shook hands in a perfunctory manner.