Did the portiere sway?
No, it hung straight from its pole, but beyond, in that other room; was anyone moving about in there?
They hardly dared breathe.
At last Rose whispered, turning that her words might reach Polly's ear.
"It's still in there now," she said, "and don't you think—"
She did not finish the question, for, at that moment, something creaked, and slipped to the floor, rolling evidently until it must have met another object that stopped it.
"There wasn't a single sound here when it was bright daylight, and Mr. Kirtland was busy painting. Why DO the things in his studio ACT so when he's away?" said Polly.
"It's as if they knew we were here, and just wanted to scare us," whispered Rose.
Frightened, hungry, weary, and nervously staring into that shadowy doorway, they waited—waited hoping that someone might come before anything happened to make their terror greater.
At the great house on the avenue, there was wild excitement. At the end of the sitting, Aunt Lois had gone to the little room, expecting to find two tired children who would be eager to go home. The sitting had been longer than usual, and she would reward them for their patience by stopping at the confectioner's on the way home and purchasing some fine candy for them.