He tried the door, only to confirm his suspicion that he had been locked in.
“What does it all mean?” he asked himself in genuine bewilderment.
He knocked loudly at the door, and called out, “Boy, open the door.”
The only answer was a discordant laugh, and he heard the steps of the boy as he hurried downstairs.
Gerald was completely bewildered. Had the boy been a man he would have been on his guard, but who could be suspicious of a street urchin, whose story seemed natural enough. What evil design could he have, or what could he do now that his victim was trapped?
“I wish he would come back, so that I might question him,” thought Gerald.
With the hope of bringing this about Gerald began to pound on the door.
“Come back here, boy!” he called out in a loud tone. “Come back, and let me out!”
But no one answered. In fact the boy who had proved so unworthy of his compassion was by this time in the street, laughing aloud at his successful maneuver.