about ten o'clock at night
-- Impossible would it be to describe the force of those passions , which , in this dreadful instant , overwhelmed her soul ; so I shall only say , it was as great as woman could sustain , and which the impatience of venting on their proper object , put it into her head to go to him in a disguise , and upbraid his perfidy . As she seldom listened to any dictates , but those of her passion , this design was no sooner formed than preparations were made for the execution , nor could all her confidante urged , on the danger and scandal of the attempt , deter her from it . There was a fellow who was frequently employed about the monastery , in whom she could confide : -- him she sent to a farmer , with orders to hire three horses , one for herself , another for her confidante , who , in spite of all her apprehensions on that account , she would needs make accompany her , and the third for the man , who was to attend them as a valet , the little road they had to travel . This fellow was directed to bring the horses about ten o'clock at night , at which time it would be dark , to the corner of a wall at the farther end of the garden , when she and her companion were to mount , and away on this wild expedition . But while the abbess was busy on her project , Elgidia had also another , though of somewhat a less desperate kind ; her sister 's temper gave her but too much reason to believe she would revenge herself on her by all the ways in her power ; and trembling at the thoughts of being exposed to her parents , and the censure of the world , as the other had threatened , which she knew no way to avoid , but by Natura making up this quarrel ; and tho ' she knew it could only be done by his renouncing all pretensions to herself , yet she rather chose to lose the man she loved , than her reputation . As she knew not whether the abbess would delay the gratification of her malice any longer than the next morning , she resolved to send for Natura that same night , in order to engage him to a second reconciliation with her sister , let the terms be never so cruel to herself . She had no sooner laid this plot , than she ran to see if the servant he had left behind was yet gone , and finding he was not , bad him wait a little , that she might send a letter by him to his master .