Nine
o'clock
In active service Grodman had been clean-shaven , like all members of _ the _ profession -- for surely your detective is the most versatile of actors . Mrs. Drabdump closed the street door quietly , and pointed to the stairs , fear operating like a polite desire to give him precedence . Grodman ascended , amusement still glimmering in his eyes . Arrived on the landing he knocked peremptorily at the door , crying , `` Nine o'clock , Mr. Constant ; nine o'clock ! '' When he ceased there was no other sound or movement . His face grew more serious . He waited , then knocked , and cried louder .