ten o'clock
The programme was carried out successfully , and beneath Fanny 's affectionate chatter Toni regained the spirits she had lost . She took her cousin on the river , returning in time to see the old house before the summer darkness fell ; and after a very satisfactory little dinner Miss Gibbs departed , highly pleased with her entertainment . Owen was not to be home till nearly midnight , and Toni decided not to sit up . Indeed , she was tired , and it was barely ten o'clock when she went upstairs to bed . Something was troubling her , too ; and as she walked slowly down the long gallery , lighted only by the Ten Little Ladies , she was asking herself a question which , in spite of its humorous form , held a hint of tragedy . `` Shall I have to tell Owen everything -- how rude she was and what an idiot I felt ? Must I really tell him about -- about the _ shrimps _ ? ''