great house came any sign. He exclaimed angrily.

"They must be drugged," he growled. He ran to the desk and
made vicious jabs at the ivory buttons.

"Suppose they're out of order!" he whispered.

There was the sound of leaping feet. The young man laughed
nervously.

"No, it's all right," he cried. "They're coming!"

The door flung open and the big burglar and a small, rat-like
figure of a man burst upon them; the big one pointing a
revolver.

"Come with me to your car!" he commanded. "You've got to take
us to Boston. Quick, or I'll blow your face off."

Although the young man glared bravely at the steel barrel and
the lifted trigger, poised a few inches from his eyes, his
body, as though weak with fright, shifted slightly and his
feet made a shuffling noise upon the floor. When the weight
of his body was balanced on the ball of his right foot, the
shuffling ceased. Had the burglar lowered his eyes, the
manoeuvre to him would have been significant, but his eyes
were following the barrel of the revolver.

In the mind of the young man the one thought uppermost was
that he must gain time, but, with a revolver in his face, he