“Perhaps he’s got hold of something,” she mused. “And I believe he’s quite capable of keeping back important papers, and bringing out a rival work to mine, compiled from authorities he has kept from me.”
For Lady Marion shared the common mistrust of Amos Goodhare, which was, perhaps, only a result of his extreme reserve.
“He looks wickeder than ever, at any rate,” murmured Kate, as the sisters went softly up the stairs together.
“Look here,” whispered Marion, when they had reached the upper floor, and come in sight of the tower staircase at the other end of a long, dark corridor. “You call him out suddenly, as if something had happened, and I’ll watch him on the stairs from the space between the staircase and the window. Then I’ll see what he does with the papers, and try to get in and have a look at them.”
“All right,” whispered Lady Kate.
And they stole along the corridor to the further end.
CHAPTER II.
The two girls carried out their plan beautifully. Marion crept softly up the tower staircase as far as the window. Then, crouching down, she managed to peep between the dusty panes and the side of the staircase, and saw the top of the librarian’s head, which moved from side to side as he scanned the pages of a discolored MS.
Suddenly, ringing down the corridor came a cry in a high, girlish voice, which caused Amos to start and mechanically to hide away under his coat the paper he was reading. Marion noted this action with a suspicious eye.
“Mr. Goodhare, Mr. Goodhare! Where are you? Come! Quick!” the second young conspirator was crying lustily.