Glancing back for a final test, Fay reached upward and waited with his arms extended to their limit. He narrowed his eyes as objects stood out in the gloom of the passage.
A skulking form passed the entrance to the alley. This form had hesitated for the fractional part of a minute. Then it had disappeared, going in the direction of the Hôtel de Ville.
A low oath dropped from Fay’s lips. The skulker might have been a guard to the embassy. Again, it might have been a drunken roisterer. Whoever it was, there was danger of detection.
Fay clinched his teeth with much of the old nerve surging through him, grasped the top of the wall with his fingers and was up and over like a quick alley cat.
Gripped with the game, he worked swiftly. The garden wherein he stood was filled with well-trimmed bushes and the scent of spring blossoms. He crossed a soft bed by stepping on stones. He stooped at a low window and tested his weight against the sash. Rising then, and listening, he drew on a pair of rubber gloves and curled his fingers.
The window might be connected with an alarm. He decided to take no chances. The panes of glass were large enough for a man to squeeze through. He chose one at the bottom and rapidly cut through the putty with the point of a knife. It flaked off and fell at his feet. The glass came out with a prying attempt at the upper edge. A breath of moist air greeted him. He had broken through to the basement of the embassy.
Canting his head, he listened. Hearing nothing, he thrust an arm through the opening he had made and worked his body after the arm. His rubber-covered fingers touched a rug on the floor. He half turned, squirmed without sound and sat down with his face toward the window.
He kept this in view as a possible get-away as he moved over the floor without rising to his feet. A faint yellowish light marked the outlines of the removed pane. All else within the basement room was black.
The ticking of a clock sounded at his right. He stared in this direction and waited with every sense alert. It was like receiving a warning of the presence of life.
He moved on with both hands outstretched. He reached the edge of the rug. His fingers coiled over the fringe. Beyond this was polished wood which felt smooth to the rubber gloves.