Suddenly Stewart felt his hat lifted from his head and a hand rumpling his hair.
“Take off your coat,” whispered a voice. “Open the door a little and demand less noise. Say that I am asleep!”
It was a call to battle, and Stewart felt his nerves stiffen. Without a word he threw off his coat and tore off his collar. Then he moved away the chair from before the door, opened it, and put one eye to the crack. There were five people in the hall—the woman, the secret agent, two soldiers, and a man in civilian attire.
“What the deuce is the matter out there?” he demanded.
It did his heart good to see how they jumped at the sound of his voice.
“Your pardon, sir,” said the officer, stepping toward him. “I hope we have not disturbed you.”
“Disturbed me? Why, I thought you were knocking the house down!”
“Frau Ritter is a heavy sleeper,” the other explained with a smile. “You will present my apologies to Madame.”
“My wife is so weary that even this has not awakened her, but I hope——”
“What is it, Tommy?” asked a sleepy voice from the darkness behind him. “To whom are you talking out there?”