midnight
The night was hot , and full of that musty mesmeric quality that changes everything into a waking dream . The maids threw dark veils over them to save their clothing from the dust kicked up by a crowd , and perhaps , too , as a concession to the none-so-ancient , but compelling custom that bids women be covered in the streets . Yasmini took Tess by the hand and walked out with her , followed closely by Hasamurti and the other women , between the pomegranates to the gate in the garden wall . From that moment , though , she stood alone and never touched hand , or sought as much as the supporting glances of her women until they came back at midnight . A watchman opened the gate and , Yasmini leading , they passed through a double line of Rajput noblemen , who drew their sabers at some one 's hoarse command and made a steel arch overhead that flashed and shimmered in the torchlight . Beyond that one order to draw sabers none spoke a word . Tess looked straight in front of her , afraid to meet the warrior eyes on either hand , lest some one should object to a foreigner in their midst on such a night of nights .