"We planned to wire all the window frames, the trunk we used to block the stair, the lift shaft—"
"And then we thought we'd try to drop a loop down and pick up the gallery guard rail, and maybe some of that wrought-iron work around the front of the house—"
"Sorry, girls; no time."
Five minutes later, the twins were ready, wrapped in fur robes. Retief had exchanged his soaked blazer for a down-lined weatherproof.
"The lift will take us all the way down, won't it?" he asked.
Lyn nodded. "We can go out through the wine cellar."
Retief picked up the needler and handed it to Lyn. "Hang on to this," he said. "You may need it yet."
A cold wind whipped the ramp as dawn lightened the sky.
"It's hard to believe," Corasol said. "What made him do it?"