about 5 o'clock
He moved so silently that I never knew he was there until I looked up and saw him . He glided from room to room like some obese ghost . At first it got on my nerves , but pretty soon I settled down to it , and in a day or so got quite used to seeing a silent bulk sliding noiselessly about the house , appearing at all sorts of odd times in all sorts of queer places . The cook returned about 5 o'clock and seemed rather inclined to take up a high-handed attitude with me , until a few well-chosen words from her master quietened her down a little . She was not slow to show me in other ways that she regarded me as an intruder in the house , and if any one thing about me was more preferable than another it was my room rather than my company . Still as I kept out of her way as much as possible , and as my sole duties consisted in keeping an eye on all strangers that approached the place and in listening for any unaccountable sounds , I came into conflict with her very seldom . Matters progressed so quietly for the next couple of days that I began to wonder whether I had not fallen into a sinecure after all .