nine o'clock
But up again came the swift thought of Courant and his ugly companions , and the indisputable evidence that the first named , at least , was a paid agent of the man who stood before them , now the prince , once the singer in far away Brazil . `` The mention of dinner recalls me to affairs of my own , '' continued Ugo . `` To-morrow night I expect a few friends here to dine , and I have the honor to ask you all to be among my guests . We shall sit down at nine o'clock , and I only exact a promise that the end may come within a week thereafter . '' The Americans could do naught but accept , but there was an oppressive sense of misgiving in their hearts . Mayhap the signal failure to carry out the plans of one night was leading swiftly and resolutely up to the success of another . For more than an hour Quentin and his friend sat silently , soberly in the former 's room , voicing only after long intervals the opinions and conjectures their puzzled minds begot , only to sink back into fresh fields for thought .