noon
So Olivia told him the story of the passage in the submarine which had arrived in Yaque two days earlier than _ The Aloha _ ; of the first trip up Mount Khalak in the imperial airship ; of Mrs. Hastings ' frantic fear and her utter refusal ever to descend ; and of what she herself had done since her arrival . This included a most practical account of effort that delighted and amazed St. George . No wonder Mrs. Hastings had said that she always left everything `` executive '' to Olivia . For Olivia had sent wireless messages all over the island offering an immense reward for information about the king , her father ; she had assigned forty servants of the royal household to engage in a personal search for such information and to report to her each night ; she had ordered every house in Yaque , not excepting the House of the Litany and the king 's palace itself , to be searched from dungeon to tower ; and , as St. George already knew , she had brought about a special meeting of the High Council at noon that day . `` It was very little , '' said the American princess apologetically , `` but I did what I could . '' `` What about the meeting of the High Council ? '' asked St. George eagerly ; `` did n't anything come of that ? ''