midnight
In the next room or here on the sofa . '' But she shook her head and remained on her knees : `` I 'm holding him , I 'm holding him . '' Evening came on . Then midnight . It had blown a good deal earlier in the day , but it was very quiet outside now . As quiet as death . There was no longer any wind to shake the pines around the house ; they stood bolt upright against the clear , frosty sky , their tops as though cut out of stiff cardboard .