Frank’s gun seemed to explode in his hand.  It leaped in the air like a live thing and the lad felt a strange sensation in his hand.  He wiggled his fingers, but now he was unable to tell whether he had a right hand or not.  There was no feeling there.  Blosberg’s bullet had struck the lad’s revolver and the shock had numbed the lad’s hand.

Before Frank could recover, Blosberg had darted down the hall and turned into a narrow passageway at the end of it, disappearing just in time to escape a bullet from Jack’s revolver, the lad appearing on the second floor at that moment.

He dashed after Blosberg.

Turning off the main hall into the narrow passage at the end, Jack brought up sharply against an object in the semi-darkness; but he found no Blosberg.  Quickly he took a match from his pocket and struck it.  There was no sign of Blosberg, and Jack made out that the object that had interrupted his progress was a ladder leading upward toward the roof.

“He’s up on the roof,” cried Jack.  “Come on.”

Without taking thought of what danger might be in store for him above, he mounted the ladder rapidly.

When Blosberg reached the roof he had replaced the trapdoor, but he wasted no time, and began looking for a means of descent.  He still held a gun in his hand and whirled sharply as the trapdoor suddenly flew open.  He saw Jack at the same moment Jack saw him, and both fired.

But the aim of each was poor and Jack followed his shot by leaping to the roof.  Then he dropped down suddenly as Blosberg fired again, and, still unharmed, drew himself quickly behind a chimney nearby.  Blosberg took refuge behind a second chimney.

Now Lord Hastings’ head appeared and drew back suddenly as Blosberg took a quick shot at him.

“All right, sir, come on!” called Jack.  “I’ll get him if he tries to pot you again.”

Lord Hastings sprang through the opening and a moment later Frank also appeared on the roof.  Blosberg made no effort to fire again, apparently realizing the hopelessness of his case.

Frank and Lord Hastings now had taken their places with Jack behind the chimney.

“Well, we can’t fool around here all day,” said Jack.  “We’ll circle about and one of us can get him.”

Lord Hastings, wounded, was left behind the chimney, while Frank, who had produced another revolver, leaped out suddenly to the left, Jack at the same time springing to the right.  Then they moved forward.

“Hold on,” came Blosberg’s voice at this moment.  “I surrender.”

The three friends breathed easier.

“Drop your gun and come out—­and have your hands in the air,” ordered Jack, still holding his revolver ready.

A moment later Blosberg appeared, unarmed.

Jack lowered his own weapon, and as he did so Blosberg, with a sudden cry, dashed forward and leaped off the roof into space.

For a brief instant Jack was stunned; then he dashed to the edge of the roof and peered over.  He saw Blosberg’s twisting, tumbling body crash head-first upon the hard walk, and then lay still.