But then Ronnie’s grin faded. The man’s words were still ringing in his ears and there was something familiar about the sound of the voice—something that made Ronnie think of Caldwell. And yet, there was something to the voice that wasn’t Caldwell’s.
The light at the bottom of the fireplace brightened and Ronnie heard the footsteps approaching the fireplace. He drew in his breath and held it. He flattened his body as close against the wall as he dared without risking his balance.
The footsteps stopped near the hearth. The man coughed. The soles of his shoes scraped against the hearthstone as he shifted his position. Then Ronnie heard the scratch of a match and smelled cigarette smoke.
Ronnie frowned, puzzled. He’d never seen Caldwell smoke. Of course that wouldn’t disprove positively that this man was Caldwell. But it confused Ronnie more than ever.
At last the man turned and crossed the room, and the boy breathed more freely again. The footsteps moved toward the rear wall. There they stopped for a moment. Then Ronnie heard the section of wall being removed, and a flood of light from outside filled the room.
Ronnie sighed long and deep. At last the man was leaving!
As soon as the wall section was back in place, Ronnie took a firm grip on the book and dropped to the floor. A moment later he was out of the fireplace and standing in the blackness of the room, trying to make up his mind what to do next.
One thing he did want to do, and that was to catch a glimpse of the intruder before he disappeared into the woods. He hurried across the room, tripping over one of the desk drawers, but managing to catch his balance just in time to save himself from a headlong fall. He reached the wall, pushed open the section of wall a few inches from the top, and peered out.
The brilliant light blinded him for a few seconds. Then he saw the man disappearing into the trees a short distance from the building. But all Ronnie could see was the back of his head and shoulders. The rest of his body was hidden in the underbrush.
It was Caldwell, and then again it wasn’t Caldwell. Ronnie just couldn’t be positive. “I reckon I’m never going to get a real close-up look at this fellow,” he told himself.