s of life, but his heart was racked by
them. As he hesitated near the entrance, uncertain which way to turn, he
saw that behind the garage there was a tool shed, and following the side
path which led to this, he found in the rear of the shed a workman's
bench, evidently little used in these cold January days. Tacitly, it
invited the discoverer to solitude and meditation, and Laurie gratefully
dropped upon it, glad of the opportunity to escape Burke's eye and
uninterruptedly think things out. But the daisied path of calm
reflection was not for him then.

Theoretically, of course, his plan would be to wait until night and
then, sheltered by the darkness, to approach the house, like a hero of
melodrama, and in some way secure entrance. But even as this ready-made
campaign presented itself, a dozen objections to it reared up in his
mind. The first, of course, was the delay. It was not yet two o'clock in
the afternoon, and darkness would not fall until five, even unwisely
assuming that it would be safe to approach the place as soon as darkness
came. In three hours all sorts of things might happen; and the prospect
of marking time during that interval, while his unbridled imagination
ran away with him, was one Laurie could not face.

On the other hand, what could he do in broad daylight? If he were seen,
as he almost certainly would be, Shaw, careless now, perhaps, in his
fancied security, would take precautions which might make impossible the
night's work of rescue. That, of course, assuming that Shaw was still at
the house among the cedars.

Was he? Laurie pondered that problem. Undoubtedly he had personally
taken Doris there, he and the secretary. But the chances seemed about
even that, having done this, he would leave her, for the day at least,
either in charge of the secretary or of some caretaker. In that case--in
that case--

The young man sprang to his feet. He would waste no more time in
speculation. He would _know_, and at once, who was in that house with
Doris. He swung back to the garage with determination in his manner, and
entered the place so unexpectedly that Burke, who had fancied him a mile
away, started at the sight of him. Then, with a contented smile, he
stilled his nerves and kept his eyes on the bill the visitor held before
him.

"See here," said the latter, "I want to do a tramp act."

"Sure you do!" Burke promptly acquiesced.

"Can you find me some ragged trousers and an old coat and cap? The