noon
he asked . But the Huguenot did not explain . The Countess sat up in the darkness of the chamber . She had writhed since noon under the stings of remorse ; she could bear them no longer . The slow declension of the day , the evening light , the signs of coming tempest which had driven her company to the shelter of the inn at the crossroads , all had racked her , by reminding her that the hours were flying , and that soon the fault she had committed would be irreparable . One impulsive attempt to redeem it she had made ; but it had failed , and , by rendering her suspect , had made reparation more difficult . Still , by daylight it had seemed possible to rest content with the trial made ; not so now , when night had fallen , and the cries of little children and the haggard eyes of mothers peopled the darkness of her chamber .