midnight
Just as he was reaching his goal , the flames began to pursue him once more , and to escape from them he crept , with a piercing shriek this time , beneath a stack of wood , where , with dense swarms of bats , the fearful cycle of his delusions recommenced . Boleslav , shaken to the foundations of his being by the awful truth the old man had revealed in his delirious ravings , felt he could no longer bear to gaze on such a hideous scene . He fled from the house as if the imaginary flames which so terrified the maniac were pursuing him too , and he did not pause till he had left the village behind him , and found himself encompassed by the shadows of the ruins . The church clock had struck the midnight hour , by the time Boleslav got back to the spot where he had left Regina 's soulless body . A protecting darkness now veiled the white face , for the moon had passed behind a bank of clouds , yet even from the darkness the great lustreless eyes gazed appealingly up at him , as if asking a question to which there was no answer here or hereafter . He threw himself on his knees beside her , and , saying good-bye to the two stars , whose light had gone out , he tenderly closed their lids . She now looked as if she were asleep , and he breathed more freely .