Diving into his kit, he brought out a small metal box wrapped about with wires.
After unwinding these wires, he stood again at attention. Catching no sound, he resumed his work. Pushing the wires through the hole left by the removal of the punch button, he slid them down between the walls, then prepared to fit the black box into position.
“Perfect,” he sighed. “Couldn’t have been better! I—”
He held up a finger for silence. There had come a faint sound from above.
“Like a bare foot touching the floor,” Johnny thought. Once more he gripped his hammer handle hard. If they were attacked he would do his bit. But would that be enough? Strange business this! A chill crept up his spine.
Felix resumed his work. His fingers flew. “There!” he sighed. “They’d never know a thing has been changed. And yet—”
A moment later he disappeared into the depths of a large closet. What he did there Johnny was not permitted to know. For a full quarter of an hour, alternately chilling and thrilling at every sound that reached his ears, Johnny stood there on guard.
“Now,” the other boy at last whispered in his ear, “we go this way.” They passed through a door and down a stair into a cellar dark as night.
“One minute here, and then for the outer air.” Felix moved forward cautiously. For all that, his foot struck some object that gave forth a low, hollow roar. At the same instant there came from above an unmistakable sound of movement.
“Coming down the stairs,” Felix breathed. “Going out to breakfast, perhaps. If they don’t, we’re trapped like rats!”