to be unoccupied at present. Nor was there anything about the door they sought to suggest that the room behind it was the refuge of a desperate criminal or, for that matter, anyone else. The door was closed and bore no sign. The two boys halted at a discreet distance and studied it.
"Wonder if he's in there now," whispered Fudge.
"Probably," replied Perry uneasily. The hall was silent and shadows lurked in the corners. From the floor below came the faint ticking of a typewriter, but that was all the sound that reached them until an automobile horn screeched outside. Perry jumped nervously.
"Come on," he whispered. "Let's beat it. He might come out and"
At that moment footsteps sounded on the lower flight. Perry tugged at Fudge's arm. "Come on, can't you?" he urged. But Fudge was listening intently to the approaching steps. The person, whoever he was, tramped along the hall below and began the ascent of the next flight. Perry looked about for concealment. A few yards away a half-open door showed an empty and dusty interior. Perry slid through and Fudge followed, closing the door softly all but a few inches. The footsteps reached the top of the stairs and approached along the corridor,
passed and kept on toward the back of the
72
