The going was treacherous and uneven, but she hurried along as swiftly as she could. Her luck held. Once a loose scaffold pole caught her foot and almost brought her down, and once she ran straight into a low pile of bricks that barked her shins and grazed her knuckles; but she made her way across the rest of the ground without further damage, and presently turned out of a deeply rutted track into the road behind.
There she slowed up her steps, and went on with a leisurely slouching stride. At any moment someone might come running past to investigate the uproar, and she had no desire to attract attention. But the road was apparently deserted, except for a small two-seater drawn up by the curb a little way ahead.
At least, she thought, the road was deserted, but as she drew nearly level with the two-seater she heard a quick step behind her. A hand gripped her arm.
She whirled round, her hand reaching again for the butt of her automatic, and looked into the smiling face of the Saint.
"It's a cop," he said. "And now, will you walk home, or shall we ride?"
And he was calmly climbing into the car and feeling around for the starter while she still stared at him.
Chapter XII
How Simon Templar went home,
and Chief Inspector Teal did not