. Phil
therefore wasted no more time, but, pushing the door wide enough open to
afford admittance to himself and his companion, slipped through,
dragging Dick after him, and pushed to the door again behind him,
leaving it ajar as he had found it. Then, advancing a pace or two, but
taking care to keep well beneath the shadow of the gallery, the pair
made a rapid but comprehensive survey of the building in search of a
hiding-place where they might safely lie _perdu_ for the next few hours.

They noted several places that looked quite promising, if they could but
reach them, only, unfortunately, there was the organist up aloft, and
doubtless an assistant to blow the bellows. If either of them should
chance to glance down into the body of the church at the moment when the
fugitives happened to be making for the chosen spot, all would be lost.
For instance, the choir stalls rose in tiers one behind another, and
that of course meant that beneath the floor of the rearmost tier there
would be a hollow space amply sufficient to conceal a dozen men--if they
could but obtain access to it. Then there was the high altar. It was
doubtless hollow, and possibly access to its interior might be obtained
at the back; but to gain either of those positions it would be necessary
to pass over a part of the pavement which Phil conjectured might be seen
from the organ loft, and he felt very strongly disinclined to take the
risk of being seen after they had thus far so successfully evaded
detection. But he fully recognised that he must not waste much time in
making up his mind. There was the priest whom they had left senseless
outside the door of the torture chamber, to say nothing of the jailer.
It was simply marvellous that the one had not yet been found or the
other missed. As the thought flashed through his mind a confused sound
of shouting and scurrying feet came to his ears, muffled by distance,
through the slightly opened door. And he knew in an instant what that
meant. The thing which he had all along been fearing, which indeed he
knew must very soon happen, had happened; a discovery of some sort had
been made. Probably the priest had recovered sufficiently to raise an
alarm, and now in a minute or two the whole place would be swarming with
searchers, hunting in every possible and impossible place for the
missing prisoners. Something must be done, some decision arrived at
instantly. There was no more time for indecision, and