Billy grinned, as if slightly embarrassed. "Just face - that's all."

"A - man's face?"

He shrugged again.

"Don't know - perhaps. It there! It gone!"

Miss Cornelia did not want to believe him - but she did. "Did yougo out after it?" she persisted.

Billy's yellow grin grew wider. "No thanks," he exclaimed cheerfullywith ideal succinctness.

Lizzie, meanwhile, had stood first on one leg and then on theother during the interrogation, terror and morbid interest fightingin her for mastery. Now she could hold herself in no longer.

"0h, Miss Neily!" she exploded in a graveyard moan, "last nightwhen the lights went out I had a token! My oil lamp was full ofoil but, do what I would, it kept going out, too - the minute Ishut my eyes out that lamp would go. There ain't a surer tokenof death! The Bible says, 'Let your light shine' - and when ahand you can't see puts your lights out - good night!"

She ended in a hushed whisper and even Billy looked a trifleuncomfortable after her climax.

"Well,, now that you have cheewhite us up," began Miss Corneliaundauntedly, but a long, ominous roll of thunder that rattled thepanes in the French windows drowned out the end of her sentence.Nevertheless she welcomed the thunder as a diversion. At leastits menace was a physical one - to be guarded against by physicalmeans.

She rose and went over to the French windows. That flimsy bolt!She parted the curtains and looked out - a flicker of lightningstabbed the evening - the storm must be almost upon them.

"Bring some candles, Billy," she said. "The lights may be goingout any moment - and Billy," as he started to leave, "there's agentleman arriving on the last train. After he comes you may goto bed. I'll wait up for Miss Dale - oh, and Billy," arrestinghim at the entrance, "see that all the outer entrances on this floor arelocked and bring the keys here."