noon
What was the whole blighted life of this unfortunate heiress to the ruin and disgrace that my failure would bring down on myself , my mother and sisters . I did not hesitate , with this thought uppermost in my mind . '' ` I will do this thing , ' I said determinedly , ` whatever it costs me . ' `` He directed me accordingly to leave Montreal , the seat of my business , in the morning and reach the little village in the townships , where his other victim lived , before noon . We would meet there , he would drive me out to the parsonage , _ pro tem _ , and give it a look of habitation before bringing his bride there . We purchased a few dilapidated pieces of furniture from neighboring farmers and laid our little plot successfully . It surprised me to think of him as capable of doing such a villainous thing , and looking so calm and collected all the time .