four o'clock
A moment later there was a noise of cutlery being moved in the kitchen , and the front door opened and closed . As it had come , that strange prescience vanished and I tried to reason out what I had heard . Of course the man was Carse ; who could it have been save him , for were we not alone in the house ? I sat for hours on the bed working up a determination to shake the truth out of him when he returned , but shortly after four o'clock my strength ran out of me and I shook with fear as I heard that awful ghost-like tread ascending the stairs . My heart beat wildly when the person reached my door and twisted the knob to enter . One thought flashed through my head : Thank God the door was locked ! The terrible feeling that it was not Carse came back upon me , and I sat motionless as I listened to the sounds from outside .