nearly nine o'clock
The usual hour for his return came and went , the dinner hardly tasted ; and then his wife counted the hours as they passed lingeringly away , until the dim , grey twilight fell with a saddening influence around her . `` He will be home soon , now , '' she thought . But the minutes glided into hours , and still he did not come . The tea-table stood in the floor until nearly nine o'clock , before Mrs. Martin sat down with little Emma . But no food passed the mother 's lips . She could not eat . There was a strange fear about her heart -- a dread of coming evil , that chilled her feelings , and threw a dark cloud over her spirits .