e back?

    telling, so ter move quickly.  upstairs and began to search.

    tered green leating case. to  size even in any ordinary modern  need secret panels and extensive cellars in order to make someto find. ill searc, aso be looking t ematically t of tairs, even o see w  and cleaned herself nearby, for company.

    But  find it.

    By t time it  and sat at tcable  t order to look tairs rooms.

    As he phone rang.

    absolutely still,  ted: ty-six rings, and t stopped.  e in tarted to search again.

    Four er ill  found t  out of reach.

    And almost at once, it seemed (taneously.

    First,  tairs, opening tchen door.

    ed Moxie out of tly est. t on raining every nerve to airs.

    t sounds: a ced and replaced, a s whe creak of a floorboard.

    Moving more silently t iptoed to t top of tairs. It  quite pitcly gray predaen tment at tterns and bobbins .

    for it delicately, listening all t doairs, and ill could see a dim flicker of lig mig at the door.

    tcment and clicked it open, and t as  ing case.

    And noening hard.

    tairs. ly, quot;Come on. I can ;

    quot;Its not ; said t;ell o look upstairs.quot;

    quot;Go on, t .quot;

    ill braced  creak of top step. t all, but   expecting it. t s along tside. ill sa the crack.

    to move. ill ed till t of to truders belly.

    But neit.

    As top step, Moxie ly out of tood ail just beo rub  trained and fit and   t ried to move back, ripped o