“Down the stairs! Let the man get out on the lawn, and then follow him. Do not let him see us.”
We groped our way up the short aisle, then down the stairs which led to the vestibule. Just as we reached the turn in the steps, we heard the man fumbling with the front door—heard him fling it open, and then followed the loud bang as the wind slammed it shut. With that we leaped down the remaining steps, across the hallway to the door. In a second some one had flung it open.
As we piled out on the lawn, the rain swept across our faces. Coming from the dense darkness of the church, we found we could see but a few feet ahead of us. Though we looked on all sides, we saw nothing of the man. Suddenly there came a flash of lightning, and in the glare I saw far down the lawn a running figure—a figure headed for the lake.
We started on a run, Bartley a little in the lead. The lake was several hundred yards away, and above the wind I could hear the water as it dashed against the shore. By the aid of another flash of lightning, we glimpsed for a second the dark figure. This time he was almost by a small building which faced the water.
As we reached Bartley's side, Carter gasped:
“I think I know where the man is going. There is a stone boat house down there.”
I wondered later why it was we were not observed, for as the man reached the boat house, we heard him fumble with the lock, and the door was slammed almost in our faces. We stood for a second by the door of the building. It was a small stone affair built of heavy granite blocks. It stood directly upon the shore of the lake, and the water was but a few feet away. As we gazed at the building, suddenly far above our heads came the reflection of a light from within. I gave a start, for the light was directly above us. There came Carter's quick voice:
“John, this place has no windows at all. It was once a studio, and there is a large skylight in the roof. When I was a kid, I often climbed on the roof and watched the artists working inside.”
“Can you get up there now?” questioned Bartley.
“Without any trouble at all,” Carter retorted. “On the other side of the building there is a big tree. You can climb the tree, then go out on a branch and drop on the roof. It's easy.”