nses
perceived a stoppage of everything; the clocks seemed to tick more
faintly, he could no longer hear the woman breathe. There was an
instant that roared with silence; then came the soft, steady padding
of feet descending the stair.

Then he heard the girl release her breath in a great, trembling
exhalation; the rustle of skirts came quick and sharp in the darkness;
he heard the door through which she had entered the room squeak upon
its hinges and then close with a click that proclaimed it fast.

After this there was a long pause. Pendleton could hear the faint
breathing of the girl, and thought it rather odd that she did not
catch the sound of his own. He pictured her leaning against the
locked door, her heart throbbing with fear as she listened to the
descending footsteps; stronger and stronger grew his desire to leap up
and assure her that friends were at hand. But at the same time the
warning grip of his companion, who seemed to feel what was in his
mind, also grew stronger and stronger.

With the closing of the door, the sounds from the stairs had ceased to
reach them. There was a long pause; Pendleton, during this, grew
sensible of a long, wavering mental antenna which he projected into
the shadows; and its delicate sensitiveness told him of the silent
approach of a fearful thing. A long, long time, it seemed to him, but
in reality it was remarkably brief.

Then the steps were heard, shuffling and secret, in the hall and very
near at hand. A soft, uncertain touch fell upon the smooth glass of
the door; down its length the inquiring fingers traveled; then the
handle was tried, held a moment and quietly released.

The steps then receded lightly down the hall.

For some moments all was quiet, then there came the scratch of a match
from the hall, and its accompanying flare, seen through the glass of
the door. A little space more, and a rending sound came to their ears,
followed by the falling of some metallic objects upon the floor.
Pendleton required no explanation of these sounds; it was plain that
the second intruder had come prepared and had forced one of the doors.

All the communicating doors of the suite had been left open; through
them came the pushing about of furniture and the drawing down of
blinds; then another match flared, followed by a stronger and steadier
light, which showed that the second visitor had lighted the gas. The
light filtered palely through the various rooms into the one in whi