eleven o'clock
He could not go through it again ; he was afraid . Of any other person on earth he would not have been , but the unexpected resurrection of Bennie D. made him a hesitating coward . Therefore he was silent when his wife left him , and he realized that his opportunity was gone , gone forever . In utter misery and self-hatred he sat , with his head in his hands , beside the kitchen table until eleven o'clock . Then he rose , got dinner , and called Brown to eat it . He ate nothing himself , saying that he 'd lost his appetite somehow or other . After the meal he harnessed Joshua to the little wagon and started on his drive to Eastboro .