five minutes to nine
And then , as he sobered himself , he tried seriously to find an answer to this question : Why had she returned , as it were surreptitiously , to the very building from which her funeral was supposed to have taken place ? Could she imagine that oblivion had covered her adventure , and that the three thousand five hundred would ignore the fact that she was understood to be dead ? He found no answer -- at least , no satisfactory answer -- except that women are women , and therefore incalculable . ` Go and see if she is there , ' he said to Simon at five minutes to nine . ` She is there , ' said Simon at five minutes past nine ; ` in one of the work-rooms alone . ' Then Hugo put a heavy curb on his instincts , and came to a sudden resolve . ` Tell the new drapery manager , ' he instructed Simon , ` to give instructions to Mrs. Tudor , or Miss Payne , whichever she calls herself , that she is to meet him in my central office at six o'clock this evening .