ten minutes to nine
She had become aware of a ticking sound in the room . It grew upon her ear , while she remembered clearly that the clock on the wall was silent , had no audible tick . What did it mean by beginning to tick so loudly all of a sudden ? Its face indicated ten minutes to nine . Mrs Verloc cared nothing for time , and the ticking went on . She concluded it could not be the clock , and her sullen gaze moved along the walls , wavered , and became vague , while she strained her hearing to locate the sound . Tic , tic , tic .