Suddenly every faculty was sharpened and drawn tight. He thought he had heard a sound. Slowly he relaxed. It must have been the wind. And then he heard it again. This time there could be no mistake. There had been a subdued, almost indistinct scraping.
Silence again, and darkness, and that vague alarm. The silence grew painful. A leaf, fluttering down, touched his face and a chill ran through his bones. Why should a leaf fall from a tree in early spring? And then the stillness was broken by a ringing call:
“Kent, it’s no go.”
A voice strangled and strained, came down out of the tree. “Who the devil are you?”
“Dr. Stone. You can’t get away with it, Kent. Tell them any story you like, but be sure you have Donovan released at once. Lady, home!”
Man and dog emerged out of the night, and Joe flattened out and hugged the ground.
“Come along, Joe,” the doctor said.
The boy stood up, abashed, and took his uncle’s arm. “How did you know I was there?”
“Ears—a blind man’s ears. When you came in Lady remained quiet. That meant she recognized someone she trusted. There could be only one answer—you. Do you realize you might have ruined everything? That’s why I sent you home. One suspicious sound from outside the house and our quarry might have taken alarm.”
Joe wet his lips. “It was Mr. Kent?”