noon
Hafiz came up to him through the dusk with a little mew of recognition or of loneliness . Afterward the cat followed him for a while and then settled down upon the grass intent on the invisible stirring stealthily in obscurity . The fragrance of the iris grew sweeter , fresher . Many new buds had unfolded since high noon . One stalk had fallen across the path and Clive 's dragging feet passed over it where he moved blindly , at hazard , with stumbling steps along the path -- errant , senseless , and always blind . For on the garden bench a young girl sat , slender , exquisite , smiling as he approached . But he could not see her , nor could he see in her arms the little flower-like face , and the tiny hands against her breast .