Page:The House On The Cliff.pdf/188

 The detective considered this for a moment. At last he sighed.

"Yes, the risk is too great!" he said. "And I've let you take too many risks already. We'd better go back to town."

Having arrived at this decision, they moved slowly across the grass of the yard, heading toward the bushes that flanked the lane. The great bulk of the old stone house loomed heavily and darkly in the night.

Then, suddenly, they heard a harsh sound that struck terror into their hearts—the clatter of the trapdoor being raised!