He was gone in a minute, giving me scarcely time to call back that I would.

Then, with a hasty apology for his abruptness, he excused himself, leaving Aunt Josephine wondering at his strange actions.

At about the same time that Craig had left the laboratory, at the Dodge house Elaine and Aunt Josephine had been in the hall near the library.  Elaine was in her street dress.

“I’m going out, Auntie,” she said with an attempted gaiety.  “And,” she added, “if anyone should ask for me, I’ll be there.”

She had showed her a card on which was engraved, the name and address of Florence Leigh.

“All right, dear,” answered Aunt Josephine, not quite clear in her mind what subtle change there was in Elaine.

. . . . . . . .

Half an hour later I was waiting near the house in the suburbs to which I had been directed by the strange telephone call the day before.  I noticed that it was apparently deserted.  The blinds were closed and a “To Let” sign was on the side of the house.

“Hello, Walter,” cried Craig at last, bustling along.  He stopped a moment to look at the house.  Then, together, we went up the steps and we rang the bell, gazing about.

“Strange,” muttered Craig.  “The house looks deserted.”

He pointed out the sign and the generally unoccupied look of the place.  Nor was there any answer to our ring.  Kennedy paused only a second, in thought.

“Come on, Walter,” he said with a sudden decision.  “We’ve got to get in here somehow.”

He led the way around the side of the house to a window, and with a powerful grasp, wrenched open the closed shutters.  He had just smashed the window viciously with his foot when a policeman appeared.

“Hey, you fellows—­what are you doing there?” he shouted.

Craig paused a second, then pulled his card from his pocket.

“Just the man I want,” he parried, much to the policeman’s surprise, “There’s something crooked going on here.  Follow us in.”

We climbed into the window.  There was the same living room we had seen the day before.  But it was now bare and deserted.  Everything was gone except an old broken chair.  Craig and I were frankly amazed at the complete and sudden change and I think the policeman was a little surprised, for he had thought the place occupied.

“Come on,” cried Kennedy, beckoning us on.

Quickly he rushed through the house.  There was not a thing in it to change the deserted appearance of the first floor.  At last it occurred to Craig to grope his way down cellar.  There was nothing there, either, except a bin, as innocent of coal as Mother Hubbard’s cupboard was of food.  For several minutes we hunted about without discovering a thing.

Kennedy had been carefully going over the place and was at the other side of the cellar from ourselves when I saw him stop and gaze at the floor.  He was not looking, apparently, so much as listening.  I strained my ears, but could make out nothing.  Before I could say anything, he raised his hand for silence.  Apparently he had heard something.