one o'clock in the morning
And as he hurried up North Street , along Western Road , and finally down Preston Street , he could hear the purring tinkle of the cycle bell before him . But not once did he catch sight of the shadowy rider . All the same his heart was beating a little faster as he turned into Brunswick Square . All the houses were in pitchy darkness , as they naturally would be at one o'clock in the morning , so it was only with great difficulty that Steel could make out a number here and there . As he walked slowly and hesitatingly along the cycle bell drummed impatiently ahead of him . `` A hint to me , '' David muttered . `` Stupid that I should have forgotten the directions to read the number over the fanlight .