except much later that night , after the sun has set and they have gathered dry wood and started a fire in the fireplace , after they have settled on accommodations - moses and his brother on the double bed , the vestal on the couch - after abraham 's snoring harmonizes with the crackling of the embers in the fireplace , the sap of the tree branches popping and hissing , the firelight casting dramatic shadows on the ceiling , after everything has settled to haunted inaction , then moses finds he can not sleep .