Silvio was roused from sleep by the commotion outside. He pulled on his pants and went to see what was going on.

Hector joined him as he walked toward the shed, and told him, "Jose says the shed guard saw a coyote and chased it off. The other guards joined in the chase but they couldn't corner it. They're pretty sure it's gone now."

As they approached the shed they could see that the door was closed and locked, and Silvio began to relax. But Hector had his big flashlight focused on the ground at their feet, and he knelt down to inspect what he saw there.

"Boss, there are fresh coyote tracks here. And fresh opium powder. I'm sure this was all cleaned up before. It looks like they've been inside again."

"That's impossible! The door is locked. Coyotes may be clever, but they don't open locked doors."

Nevertheless he got out his keys and unlocked the door. Both men began to feel very uneasy when they saw the mess inside. What was happening here was not natural.

Silvio pulled himself together. "This may be the work of a coyote, but there was a man involved. I want to see the shed guard."

Hector turned and waved to Jose, who was watching from nearby. When he was told what was wanted, Jose gestured to another man who had been waiting with him, who said. "It was a coyote, Senor, a very insolent one. He seemed to be laughing at us as we chased him off. The door stayed locked the whole time, I am sure."

"How can you be sure, if you were running around chasing a coyote?" asked Silvio.

"It was locked when I went after him, and locked when I came back. No more than a few minutes. There was no time for anything else to happen."

Silvio lashed out and struck him. "No time! There was time enough for someone to get in the shed again! Perhaps it was you who unlocked it, and got everyone to chase the coyote while your confederate went inside."

"No, Senor, no!" the man protested, "I am not permitted to have a key! It was not me, I swear to you!"

Silvio turned to Hector. "Double the guard on the shed. And make sure the men can be trusted."

In the morning, when the bus carrying the day shift arrived, the local workers quickly became all astir with rumors about the night's events. The story of a mysterious coyote that laughed at the guards and had unlocked the secret shed made many of the local people very nervous. Some of the more superstitious refused to stay for work, and got back on the bus with the night shift to return to their homes. When Eligio became aware of all this he raged at Silvio, and fumed until Silvio said he would guard the shed himself that night, and put an end to the madness.