“Is the room ready, Julius?” asked the old man.

“Yes, sir.”

“Boy, take the valise upstairs, and I will follow you.”

Up two flights of stairs walked Dodger, followed by the old man and the negro.

The latter opened the door of a back room, and Dodger, obedient to directions, took the valise inside and deposited it on a chair.

He had hardly done so when the door closed behind him, and he heard the slipping of a bolt.

“What does all this mean?” Dodger asked himself in amazement.

Chapter XVIII.
In A Trap.

“Hold on there! Open that door!” he exclaimed, aloud.

There was no answer.