nearly eight o'clock before
Of course , she knew that nothing could have happened ; but she wanted to look at it , to open the casket and see the flash of it before her eyes . For was she quite sure that it was not one of those fairy gifts , which , put into the hand in a blaze of beauty , may be found in the pocket as withered leaves ? Yet her tenacious nets of duty caught and caught , and again caught her , so that when the carriage finally fetched her home it was between lighted street-lamps . They were dining early that night on account of the Bullers ' box party , but it was nearly eight o'clock before Flora reached the house . And it was , of course , for that reason that she ran up-stairs -- ran wildly , regardlessly , before the eyes of Shima -- and along the hall , her high heels clacking on the hard floors , and through her bedroom to the dressing-room , snatched open the table drawer , unlocked the casket with a twitch of the key -- and , ah , it was there ! It was really real ! Why , what had she expected ?