boards, and
the stain was of but a single coat, and a very meager one at that! The
smile faded. There were a good many knots; and there were four corners
to the room, and therefore eight boards, each one of which would answer
to the description of being the "sixth panel."

She went to the corner nearest her, and dropped down on her knees. As
well start with this one! She had not dared press Danglar, or Danglar's
deformed brother, for more definite directions, had she? She counted the
boards quickly from the corner to her right; and then, the flashlight
playing steadily, she began to press first one knot after another, in
the board before her, working from the bottom up. There were many knots;
she went over each one with infinite care. There was no result.

She turned then to the sixth board from the corner to her left. The
result was the same. She stood up, her brows puckered, a sense of
anxious impatience creeping upon her. She had been quite a while over
even these two boards, and it might be any one of the remaining six!

Her eyes traversed the room, following the ray of the flashlight. If she
only knew which one, it would--Was it an inspiration? Her eyes had fixed
on the cretonne hanging across one of the far corners from the door, and
she moved toward it now quickly. The hanging might very well serve for
an other purpose than that of merely a wardrobe! It seemed suddenly
to be the most likely of the four corners because it was ingeniously
concealed.

She parted the hanging. A heterogeneous collection of clothing hung
from pegs and nails. Eagerly, hastily now, she brushed these aside, and,
close to the wall, dropped down on her knees again. The minutes passed.
Twice she went over the sixth board from the corner to her right. She
felt so sure now that it was this corner. And then, still eagerly, she
turned to the corresponding board at her left.

It was warm and close here. The clothing hanging from the pegs and nails
enveloped her, and, with the cretonne hanging itself, shut out the air,
what little of it there was, that circulated through the room.

Over the board, from the tiniest knot to the largest, her fingers
pressed carefully. Had she missed one anywhere? She must have missed
one! She was sure the panel in question was here behind this hanging.
Well, she would try again, and...

What was that?

In an instant the flashlight in her hand was out, and she was listening
tensely. Yes, there was a footstep-