midnight
The visit was a friendly but an important one . The nobleman was no other than the young Duke of Mizrox , intimate friend of the unfortunate Prince Lorenz who met his death at the hand of Prince Gabriel , and was the leader of the party which opposed the vengeful plans of Princess Volga . His arrival in Edelweiss was awaited with deep anxiety , for it was suspected that his news would be of the most important character . Beverly Calhoun sat on the balcony with the princess long after midnight . The sky was black with the clouds of an approaching storm ; the air was heavy with foreboding silence . Twice , from their darkened corner near the pillar , they saw Baldos as he paced steadily past the castle on patrol , with Haddan at his side . Dreamily the watchers in the cool balcony looked down upon the somber park and its occasional guardsman .