midnight
The captain echoed his cry ; the passage opened before them ; in an instant the ship flew past the rocks ; even the oldest sailor breathed more freely when she glided on inside the Sound . The sails were furled , the anchor was dropped , as she reached the spot from which she had weighed in the morning . The captain insisted on escorting Hilda and her companions on shore . `` In three days , then , at midnight , all will be ready , '' he whispered , as he parted from her at the castle landing-place . Although the sun during the middle of the Shetland summer scarcely ceases to shine , the inhabitants of these isles , like other mortals , require sleep , and take it at the usual time . Soon after the sea trip Miss Wardhill had taken on board the `` Saint Cecilia , '' Lawrence Brindister was seen one afternoon to descend from his room , booted and spurred , as if for a distant excursion , Hilda , who had her reasons for so doing , watched him anxiously . He stamped about the house , clattering his spurs , and muttering to himself , as was his custom , when anything out of the usual course occupied his mind .