midday
It seemed an hour before she heard him go away , and the echo of his footsteps came more and more faintly as he went down the stairs . He evidently had not guessed that she was in the little room which served as a nursery -- the room which had once been Dalrymple 's laboratory . She did not read the letter again , but she found a match and set fire to it , and watched it as it burned to black , gossamer-like ashes on the brick floor . It was long before she had the courage to go down and face Griggs and say that she was ready for the daily walk together before the midday meal . And all that day she went about dreamily , scarcely knowing what she did or said , though she was sure that she did not fail in acting her part , for the habit was so strong that the acting was natural to her , except when something waked her to herself too suddenly . He went away at last in the evening , and she was free to do what she pleased with herself , to close the deadly wound she had received , if that were possible , to forget it even for an hour , if she could . But she could not .