nine o'clock
It was the thought of Billy , next morning , that led Saxon to go under the sink , unscrew the cap to the catchtrap , and rescue the five-dollar piece . Prisoners were not well fed , she had been told ; and the thought of placing clams and dry bread before Billy , after thirty days of prison fare , was too appalling for her to contemplate . She knew how he liked to spread his butter on thick , how he liked thick , rare steak fried on a dry hot pan , and how he liked coffee that was coffee and plenty of it . Not until after nine o'clock did Billy arrive , and she was dressed in her prettiest house gingham to meet him . She peeped on him as he came slowly up the front steps , and she would have run out to him except for a group of neighborhood children who were staring from across the street . The door opened before him as his hand reached for the knob , and , inside , he closed it by backing against it , for his arms were filled with Saxon . No , he had not had breakfast , nor did he want any now that he had her .