midnight before
The four drew a breath of relief . Scattergood wished that he might have joined them in the breath , but there was no relief for him . He had joined his fortunes to those of Ovid Nixon -- and to those of Ovid 's mother ; had become _ particeps criminis _ , and the requirements of the situation rested heavily upon him . It was past midnight before the laborious four finished their review of the books and joined with Scattergood in giving Ovid a clean bill of health . `` Did n't think Ovid had it in him to steal , '' said Kettleman . `` Hai n't got no business stirrin ' us up like this for nothin ' , '' said Atwell , acrimoniously . `` Maybe , '' suggested Scattergood , `` Ovid 's come down with a fit of suthin ' . ''