midnight
By the fifth day , they began to hourly expect the Chemist , but it passed through its weary length , and he did not come . The sixth day dragged by , and then came the last -- the day he had promised would end their watching . Still he did not come , and in the evening they gathered , and all four watched together , each unwilling to miss the return of the adventurer and his woman from another world . But the minutes lengthened into hours , and midnight found the white-faced little group , hopeful yet hopeless , with fear tugging at their hearts . A second week passed , and still they watched , explaining with an optimism they could none of them feel , the non-appearance of their friend . At the end of the second week they met again to talk the situation over , a dull feeling of fear and horror possessing them . The Doctor was the first to voice what now each of them was forced to believe .