four o'clock
She hurried upstairs and stood breathing heavily with her back to the door . A little later she thought she heard someone -- someone with a heavy step -- moving around downstairs . `` I left the control box down there , '' she thought . `` Of course , it 's absurd ... '' At four o'clock she went slowly down the stairs to start Ronald 's dinner . Pascal was standing by the refrigerator , exactly where she had left him . Not until she had started to peel the potatoes did she notice the little bouquet of pansies in the center of the table . Corinne felt she needed a strong cup of tea .