"But suppose they take away the ladder?"
"Then I will go down as I came up, and enter the house by the front door. Don't be afraid of anything."
"I'm not afraid."
"I will be near you. I want to know what these fellows mean to do. If they close the door, I will go down the ladder into the entry."
Suddenly my companion appeared to have become very enthusiastic in the business upon which we were engaged. Though he did not say so, I was satisfied that he was convinced of the truth of my statement.
"What shall I do?" I asked, rather puzzled by the tactics of the detective.
"Do whatever they wish you to do; but don't let them know that you have been off the roof since you escaped.
"Why not?"
"I cannot stop to explain now; only I don't think these rascals have taken all this trouble with you for fifty or a hundred dollars; and they mean to use you as a cat's paw for something else."