Fever was rife in the camp.

Mosquitoes buzzed incessantly everywhere, and rats began to take refuge in the bungalow.
Puck was privately terrified at rats, but she smothered her terror in her husband's presence and maintained a smiling front.

They laid down poison for the rats, who died horribly in inaccessible places, making her wonder if they were not almost preferable alive.

And then one night she discovered a small snake coiled in a corner of her bedroom.
She fled to Merryon in horror, and he and the _khitmutgar_ slew the creature.

But Puck's nerves were on edge from that day forward.