Five
o'clock
`` I told him I should be first . I wonder what time it is ! '' As if in answer to her question a distant clock struck five . `` Five o'clock ! '' murmured Beppina , and , struggling to her knees in her great carved bed , she dipped a dainty finger in the vase of holy water which hung on the wall near by , and crossed herself devoutly . Then , folding her hands , she murmured an Ave Maria before the image of the Virgin which stood on the little table beside her bed . This duty done , she slid to the floor , thrust her little white feet into a pair of blue felt slippers , and her arms into the sleeves of a gay wrapper , then ran across the room to the eastern windows .