"Maxwell Grant - The Shadow - 007 - The Silent Seven" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grant Maxwell)

"Hm-m-m!" interrupted the old man. "Go on."
Marchand turned in his chair and stared at Oscar, the serving man. In this way he was gaining the
testimony of two men, for he was observing every expression on Oscar's face as well as listening to
Willis.

Willis knew this. It increased his anxiety. He chose his words carefully to make every detail in his story
accurate.

"When you went away, Mister Marchand," said Willis, "Oscar and I obeyed all your instructions. I
performed my duties as your secretary. Oscar attended to his duties as servant. One of us was always in
the house.

"One week ago to-night"тАФthe young man glanced at an old-fashioned clock on the
mantelpieceтАФ"almost at this very time, just before midnight, Oscar tapped at the door of my room,
where I was working.

"He whispered to me, sir, and said that he had heard a noise downstairs. We went down together and
searched the house thoroughly. There was no one here.

"I believed that Oscar had been deceived by a noise outside. He finally was inclined to believe same as I
did."

Oscar nodded slightly as Willis paused.

"Two nights ago," continued the secretary, "Oscar again knocked at my door, after I had retired. He
seized my arm when I came into the hallway.

"We listened. Both of us heard slight sounds from the front of the house -"

"From my room?" questioned Marchand.

"From your room, sir. Before we could act, the door of your room opened. The ray of a flashlight swept
down the hall, then disappeared.

"But, as chance would have it, the man who held the light must have seen us. We dashed forward. He
gained the stairs ahead of us. I switched on the lights when we reached the first floor.

"The man had disappeared; but a few moments later, we heard a noise in the back hallway. We ran there
and found the little window open. The man had escaped!"

"What did you do then?"

"I ran out through the front door. I saw a policeman passing. He went through the house with Oscar, after
ordering me to call the police station. The patrol came and several policemen joined us. We could find no
trace of the man."

Willis finished his discourse and waited for comment from Marchand. The old man still stared at Oscar.
Then, suddenly, his gaze turned to Paget.

The man in evening clothes appeared to be indifferent to the conversation. When Marchand looked at