twelve
o'clock before
`` The childer 'd make sure she was goin ' to die if they heerd her , '' she thought , and hoped the nursery door was securely shut . She had found it was best to let Mrs Darragh cry till she had exhausted her grief . Then she would fall asleep , and forget . Tonight it was past twelve o'clock before Mrs Darragh slept . Lull made up the fire , and crept softly out of the room to go to her own bed . But when she opened the door she discovered the five children in their nightgowns sitting huddled together in the passage . They looked at Lull with anxious eyes .