diabolically acute hearing. He suddenly flashed into rage. 'If

there's anyone in this house--' he cried with an oath, and left the

threat unfinished. He put his hand in his pocket, failed to find

what he wanted, and rushing past me went blundering noisily and

pugnaciously downstairs. But I did not follow him. I sat on the

head of the staircase until his return.

"Presently he came up again, still muttering. He opened the door of

the room, and before I could enter, slammed it in my face.

I resolved to explore the house, and spent some time in doing so

as noiselessly as possible. The house was very old and tumble-down,

damp so that the paper in the attics was peeling from the walls, and

rat infested. Some of the door handles were stiff and I was afraid

to turn them. Several rooms I did inspect were unfurnished, and

others were littered with theatrical lumber, bought second-hand, I

judged, from its appearance. In one room next to his I found a lot

of old clothes. I began routing among these, and in my eagerness

forgot again the evident sharpness of his ears. I heard a stealthy

footstep and, looking up just in time, saw him peering in at the

tumbled heap and holding an old-fashioned revolver in his hand.

I stood perfectly still while he stared about open-mouthed and

suspicious. 'It must have been her,' he said slowly. 'Damn her!'

He shut the door quietly, and immediately I heard the key turn in

the lock. Then his footsteps retreated. I realised abruptly that I

The Invisible Man