t put me wise?"

"Certainly not."

"Well, of course, one can guess why."

"Can one?"

"Why, forgive me for calling your bluff, it wouldn't be safe,
would it? Of course, I'm a sure-enough bad man--and all that. But you
must be a bird of my feather, or you wouldn't flock together so
spontaneously."

Sally opened her eyes wide and adopted a wondering drawl known to have
been of great service to Miss Lucy Spode: "Why, whatever do you mean?"

"Good!" Blue Serge applauded. "Now I _know_ where I stand. That baby
stare is the high sign of our fraternity--of blackbirds. Only the
guilty ever succeed in looking as transparently innocent. Too bad you
didn't think of that in time."

"I don't follow you," she said truthfully, beginning to feel that she
wasn't figuring to great advantage in this passage of repartee.

"I mean, your give-away is calculated to cramp your style; now you
can't very well cramp mine, threatening to squeal."

"Oh, can't I?"

"No. I know you won't go through with it; not, that is, unless you're
willing to face Sing Sing yourself. For that matter, I don't see how
you're going to make Boston at all to-night, after that break, unless
you go on your own; I don't believe I'm scared enough to stand for
being shaken down for your transportation."

He was gaining the whip-hand much too easily. She averted her face to
mask a growing trepidation and muttered sullenly: "What makes you
think I'm afraid--?"

"Oh, come!" he chuckled. "I know you hadn't any lawful business in
that house, don't I?"

"How do you know it?"

"Because if you had, I would now be going peaceful, with the kind
policeman instead of being a willing victim of a very pleasant form of
blackmail."

Burning with indignation and shivering a bit with fear of the man, she
stopped short, midway down the ramp to the "lower level," and
momentarily contemplated throwing herself upon his mercy and crawling
out of it all with whatever grace she might; but his ironic and
skeptical smile provoked her beyond discretion.

"Oh, very well!" she said ominously, turning, "if that's the way you
feel about it, we may as well have this thing out here and now."

And she made as if to go back the way she had come; but his hand fell
upon her arm with a touch at once light and imperative.

"Steady!" he counselled quietly. "This is no place for either
bickering or barefaced confidences. Besides, you mustn't take things
so much to heart. I was only making f