noon
No one seemed able to recollect that such a person had been making inquiries , and Ste. Marie began to suspect that his friend was being imposed upon . He determined to warn Stewart that his agents were earning their fees too easily . So he returned to Paris more than a little dejected , and sore over this waste of time and effort . He arrived by a noon train , and drove across the city in a fiacre to the rue d'Assas . But as he was in the midst of unpacking his portmanteau -- for he kept no servant ; a woman came in once a day to `` do '' the rooms -- the door-bell rang . It was Baron de Vries , and Ste. Marie admitted him with an exclamation of surprise and pleasure . `` You passed me in the street just now , '' explained the Belgian , `` and as I was a few minutes early for a lunch engagement I followed you up . ''