object."

"Very well. I will be careful."

"Do so, and all will be well. Of course, no noise, even as loud as a
whisper, must be heard in the lady's room."

"I will be discreet; trust me for that. I am glad you have come to the
rescue; I find there is nothing like a woman's wit."

"Take care, then, that you are never _outwitted_ by them!"

"Not much fear of that while I have such an ingenious ally!"

"Take good care to keep her an ally; as an enemy, she might be equally
ingenious."

And so they parted. As she left the room, she mentally exclaimed:

"'Come to the rescue!' Yes, I am truly glad I have!"

The guests retired to their beds, and all was still as the solemn silence
of midnight. The old clock in the corner tolled the hour of eleven, and
half an hour afterward, a stealthy tread might have been heard along the
partition dividing the two rooms already named. Soon a door slowly opened
on its rusty hinges, and in the rayless darkness Durant entered the number
containing his victim. He reached the couch, and paused to assure himself
that all was as he desired. His ear was saluted with a heavy breathing, as
of one in deep sleep.