about five o'clock A.M.
It was not until Sandy was actually in the express heading for London that he realised quite all the difficulties which lay ahead . He was just a big-hearted , impulsive boy , and , without wasting time in futile blame or vain regrets , he had plunged straight into the maelstrom which had engulfed his pal , determined to help her back to shore . But , assuming he was right in his surmise that Rooke would take Nan first of all to London , he doubted his own ability to persuade her to return with him , and even if he were successful in this , there still remained the outstanding fact that by no human means could she reach Mallow until the small hours of the morning . He could well imagine the consternation and scandal which would ensue should she arrive back at the Court about five o'clock A.M. ! In a place like Mallow , where there was a large staff of indoor and outdoor servants , it would be practically impossible to secure Nan 's return there unobserved . And as far as the neighbourhood -- and Roger Trenby -- were concerned , she might just as well run away with Maryon Rooke as return with Sandy McBain at that ungodly hour ! She would be equally compromised .