noon
The continual obscurity of the place began to weigh him down . This was relieved each day for a few moments by a thin shaft of light . Fandor was quick to account for the phenomenon . `` It happens exactly at noon when the sun is directly overhead , '' he reasoned , `` and finds an entrance through a crack in the bronze . '' Many times he climbed to the body of the naiad in the hope of discovering some method of escape , but at length he realized that the thing was impossible . He was seated one night deep in thought , puzzling his brains for the reason of Juve 's defection , when a voice suddenly broke the silence . `` Can you hear me ? ''