CHAPTER XXI
THE UNEXPECTED BLOW
McKinnon, ill at ease, tested his coils and wondered if Alicia had indeed succeeded in reaching the engine-room. Then he wondered if she were once more safely back in her cabin. Then all thought passed away from him, for the light patter of hurried footsteps, followed by an oath and an answering cry of alarm, sounded from outside his door.
"You keep out o' here!"
It was Ganley's voice, short and brusk. The knob of the locked door twisted and moved. The new-comer, whoever it was, must have caught hold of this knob from the outside. It was equally plain, from the sound of the sudden gasp and the scuffle that followed, that Ganley had flung this intercepted visitor aside from the door. It was then, and only then, that the listening operator realised who that new-comer must be.
McKinnon switched out his light before he
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