three minutes before twelve
I gave the name of a street in the direction , but at some distance from Maxine 's , lest ears should hear which ought not to hear : and it was only when we were well away from the hotel that I amended my first instructions . Even then , I mentioned the street leading into the one where I was due , not the street itself . '' _ Depêchez vous _ '' I added , for I had delayed eight or ten minutes longer than I ought , and this had upset the exactness of my calculations . The man obeyed ; nevertheless , instead of reaching the top of Maxine 's street at two or three minutes before twelve , as I had intended , it was nearly ten minutes past when I got out of my cab at the corner : and when I came to the gate of the house a clock somewhere was striking the quarter hour after midnight . MAXINE DE RENZIE 'S PART How I got through the play on that awful night , I do n't know . When I went onto the stage to take up my cue , soon after the beginning of the first act , my brain was a blank .