four o'clock
I was utterly puzzled . Had Carmilla discovered one of those secret passages which the old housekeeper said were known to exist in the schloss , although the tradition of their exact situation had been lost ? A little time would , no doubt , explain all -- utterly perplexed as , for the present , we were . It was past four o'clock , and I preferred passing the remaining hours of darkness in Madame 's room . Daylight brought no solution of the difficulty . The whole household , with my father at its head , was in a state of agitation next morning . Every part of the chateau was searched .