"It doesn't seem that it will," said the Devil. "But never mind, it won't make any difference in the long run. If there's anything I've got lots of, it's time. I'll figure out a way to get out of here. Meantime I'd advise you to stay out of my reach. And don't think that shovel would help you—it's only women who can put dents in my noggin. And your wife won't get a second chance—the woman doesn't live whom I can't hypnotize in one second."
"Thanks for telling me," said Joe. "I'll see that she stays out of the basement."
"Why don't you go back to bed," advised the Devil. "I've got to think about this situation."
"Go back to bed?"
"What else can you do?" asked the Devil.
Joe thought a minute. "Nothing," he agreed finally. "But it seems to me that you are in the same boat. You can't loose yourself from that chain, and as long as I keep people out of the basement, your presence here will be a secret. Okay, you think about it, and I'll go upstairs and do the same. Seems to me that this thing can be turned to good, somehow."
"While I'm down here you can't do much else," said the Devil dourly. "But it can't last—it never has. This concrete will disintegrate finally..."
Joe Emerald stared at the Devil a moment, then turned and went thoughtfully up the stairs. At the top, he flicked the switch and the basement went dark. Peering down, he could see only two balefully glowing yellow orbs, slanted and evil, shining in the darkness.
He opened the cellar door, stepped into the room above and closed the door behind him. Pearl stood in the doorway of the living room, staring anxiously at him. He looked at her a moment, and suddenly he grinned.
"Pearl," he said. "We've got the Devil downstairs, chained to the wall!"