midnight
Other anxious thoughts also troubled her ; thoughts of the dangers to which she was exposed from the hatred of Lord Vincent , the jealousy of Mrs. Dugald , and the depravity of both ; thoughts of her father 's long and strange silence ; thoughts of the insult she had received that evening in being commanded to chaperon Mrs. Dugald to the theater ; thoughts of the mysterious sounds she had heard from Mrs. Dugald 's room , and which she was so far from connecting with any idea of Katie that she attributed them solely to a quarrel between her two precious companions ; and lastly the ever-recurring thoughts of that mysterious discovery which old Katie had made , and which she was so eager to impart to her lady . Ever Claudia 's thoughts , traveling in a circle , came back to this point . Wearied with fruitless speculation she still sat on , watching the decaying fire and listening to the thunder of the sea as it broke upon the rocks at the base of the castle . At length she got up , drew aside the heavy window curtains , opened the strong oaken shutters and looked out upon the expanse of the gray and dreary sea , dimly visible under the cloudy midnight sky . At last she closed the window and went to bed . But she could not sleep . She lay wakeful , restless , anxious , through the long hours of the middle night , and through the gray dawn of morning and the early flush of day .