He couldn’t see at all now; he had to fight for each stabbing breath; and the blood drummed relentlessly in his ears. One hand had found Saul’s throat and tightened on it, but he could no longer hold his ground and fell back inch after inch until at last he seemed to be lifted off his feet. He went crashing against the banisters; something was breaking; the life was being squeezed out of him; but still he held on. Now they were clear of the banisters again, for Saul had relaxed his pressure for a moment and had been compelled to fall back a step, with Penderel still clinging to him. Saul put out all his remaining strength in one tremendous heave. ‘I’m done, I’m done,’ Penderel was crying, crying through a black night of crashing, splintering woodwork and rushing air. And then there was no more pain.
CHAPTER XIV
Margaret was trying the handle of the door. ‘He’s locked it,’ she cried, staring at Gladys.
‘I know he has.’ Gladys had sunk to her knees. She put the candlestick, with its feeble, spluttering flame on the floor beside her, and stretched out a hand to the door, leaning against it. ‘He’s shut us in because he thought we’d be safe in here.’ She spoke slowly, dully.
‘I don’t want to be safe, to be shut in like this.’ Margaret rattled the handle uselessly. ‘I want to know what’s happening. I want to be with Phil—my husband.’
‘Don’t you see?’ Gladys had roused herself and was looking up now, her eyes bright with resentment. ‘He’s out there, waiting for that lunatic to come down, and shoved us in here to be out of the way. You don’t seem to understand what he’s doing. You thought he was dodging it, didn’t you? My God!’
‘I did at first,’ Margaret said gently. ‘I’m sorry.’ And as she looked down at the girl’s pale face, working queerly in that jumpy little light, she felt sorry too, sorry for her, sorry for everybody.
‘As if he would!’ Then her tone changed from indignation to bitterness. ‘Well, I wish to God he had, wish we’d never come back. It would have to be him, of course it would be. It was just waiting for him. That’s silly, I suppose. I don’t care. I’m all to pieces now—and he’s out there, as lonely as hell, waiting for that—that thing.’
‘It’ll be all right,’ Margaret told her, trying to keep her voice quiet and confident. ‘The others will be back soon. Then there’ll be three of them.’
‘That woman locked the other door,’ Gladys muttered.