Nine o'clock
By this time the excitement and worry were getting too much for me . What with Nikola , the spy , Beckenham , Phyllis , the unknown lover , and old Mr. Wetherell , I had more than enough to keep my brain occupied . I sat down on a chair on the verandah with a sigh and reviewed the whole case . Nine o'clock struck by the time my reverie was finished . Just as I did so a newspaper boy came down the street lustily crying his wares . To divert my mind from its unpleasant thoughts , I called him up and bought an _ Evening Mercury _ . Having done so I passed into my sitting-room to read it .