eleven o'clock
Nothing happened to disturb me in the night -- nothing , that is , except a nightmare in which Colonel Wragge chased me amid thin streaks of fire , and his sister always prevented my escape by suddenly rising up out of the ground in her chair -- dead . The deep baying of dogs woke me once , just before the dawn , it must have been , for I saw the window frame against the sky ; there was a flash of lightning , too , I thought , as I turned over in bed . And it was warm , for October oppressively warm . It was after eleven o'clock when our host suggested going out with the guns , these , we understood , being a somewhat thin disguise for our true purpose . Personally , I was glad to be in the open air , for the atmosphere of the house was heavy with presentiment . The sense of impending disaster hung over all . Fear stalked the passages , and lurked in the corners of every room .