"Hell!" he said succinctly.
Resting his torch upon a dust-coated ledge of the room, which
presumably was situated in the front of the house, he deposited a cud
of chewing-gum in the empty grate and lovingly selected a fresh piece
from the packet which he always carried. Once more chewing he returned
to the narrow passage, which he knew must be that in which the secret
doorway had opened.
It was uncarpeted and dirty, and the walls were covered with faded
filthy paper, the original color and design of which were quite lost.
There was not the slightest evidence that a door had ever existed in
any part of the wall. Following a detailed examination Kerry returned
his magnifying glass to the washleather bag and the bag to his
waistcoat pocket.
"H'm," he said, thinking aloud, "Sin Sin Wa may have only one eye, but
it's a good eye."
He raised his glance to the blackened ceiling of the passage, and saw
that the trap giving access to the roof was situated immediately above
him. He directed the ray of the torch upon it. In the next moment he
had snapped off the light and was creeping silently towards the door
of the front room.
The trap had moved slightly!
Gaining the doorway, Kerry stood just inside the room and waited.
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