"Probably awaiting the return of the real tenant who hasn't returned up
to this hour"--with an oblique glance at the squat man.
"Kind o' queer. Say, you stay here and watch the lady while I scout
round."
The squat man nodded and leaned over the foot of the bed. The policeman
stalked out.
"I was in the kitchen," said Kitty, confidingly. "I saw shadows on
the window curtain. It did not look right. So I started to inquire and
almost bumped into two men leaving the apartment. They took to their
heels when they saw me."
Again the squat man nodded. He appeared to be a good listener.
"Where were you when we crossed the fire escape?"
"In the yard on the other side of the fence." There was reluctance in
the guttural voice.
"Oh, I see. You live there."
As this was a supposition and not a direct query, the squat man wagged
his head affirmatively.
Kitty, her ears strained for disquieting sounds in the kitchen, laid her
palm on the patient's cheek. It was very hot. She dipped a bit of cotton
into the water, which had grown cold, and dampened the wounded man's
cheeks and throat. Not that she expected to accomplish anything by
this act; it relieved the nerve tension. This man was no fool. If her
surmises were correct he was a strong man both in body and in mind. In a
rage he would be terrible. However, had Johnny Two-Hawks done it--beaten
the man and escaped? No doubt he had been watching all the time and
had at length stepped in to learn if his subordinates had followed his
instructions and to what extent they had succeeded.
"If he dies it will be murder."
"It is a big city."
"And so many terrible things happen like this every day. But sooner or
later those who commit them are found out. Nemesis always follows on the
heels of vengeance."
For the first time there was a flash of interest in the battered eyes of
the intruder. Perhaps he saw that this was not only a pretty woman but
a keen one, and sensed the veiled threat. Moreover, he knew that she had
lied at one point. There had been no light in the room across the court.
But what in the world was happening out there in the kitchen? Kitty
wondered. So far, not a sound. Had Cutty really taken flight? And why
shouldn't he have faced it out at her side? Very odd on Cutty's part.
Shortly she heard the heavy shoes of the policeman returning.