It was terrible to think that he was to become the victim of such a man. Apart from the pain of death, it was made more terrible at the hands of an insane man.
What should he do?
Rupert had read somewhere that to openly combat an insane person is dangerous. It is advisable to humor his delusions. Fortunately he had read a story recently in which a man had escaped death by this very means. It was a desperate chance, but Rupert resolved to make use of it. Instead of showing the fear he really felt, he forced himself to appear calm.
"You are mistaken," he said; "the boy you are to sacrifice is under the bed."
The maniac was just about to lunge with his knife, but Rupert's words made him pause.
"Look under the bed and you will see him," continued the bell-boy.
The bed was at the other end of the room. The maniac went over to it, and, getting on his knees, began to peer underneath.
Here was Rupert's opportunity. He sprang to the door, turned the key, but did not dare to stop to lock it on the outside, and dashed into the entry. The door of the next room chanced to be open. He darted inside, and bolted himself in.
He was just in time. The maniac, discovering the ruse, rose to his feet, and, knife in hand, ran into the hall with a blood-curdling cry. He looked in vain for Rupert, who was nowhere to be seen. The staircase was near. He ran down, flight after flight, till he reached the office floor, and made a great sensation as he dashed through it with his drawn knife.
Here, however, he had some one more formidable than a boy to contend with. Two burly porters sprang upon him, and felled him to the floor. The knife was taken from him, and the clerk, horror-struck, leaning over him, asked, "What did you do with the boy?"