noon
This brought her to swift decision she hurried to her room , desired the maid not to dress her hair , contenting herself with pinning a few roses into its natural curls . Then , in fierce haste , she made her throw on her sea-green dress of bombyx silk edged with fine embroidery , and fasten her peplos with the first pins that came to hand ; and when the snap of her bracelet of costly sapphires broke , as she herself was fastening it , she flung it back among her other trinkets as she might have tossed an unripe apple back upon a heap . She slipped her little hand into a gold spiral which curled round half her arm , and gathered up the rest of her jewels , to put them on out of doors as she sat watching . The waiting-woman was ordered to come for her at noon with the flowers for the Patriarch , and , in a quarter of an hour after leaving her lurking place , she was back there again . Just in time ; -- for while she was putting on the trinkets Nilus came out , followed by some slaves with several leather bags which they replaced in the chariot . Then the treasurer stepped in and with him Philippus , and the vehicle drove away . `` So Paula has entrusted her property to Orion again , '' thought Katharina .