nearly eleven o'clock at night
It was nearly eleven o'clock at night when some one knocked at the door of Fred Osborne 's room . He was not in the least expecting any caller at that hour , and had paid no attention when he had heard the doorbell of the boarding-house ring downstairs , and the sound of feet ascending the steps . He hastened to open the door , however , and in the dim hallway he recognized the dark , handsome face of Maurice Stark , and behind it the tall , raw-boned form of Peter Macgregor . Both of them uttered an exclamation of satisfaction at seeing him .