It wa5 a woman'5 voice, plea5ant, un5urpri5ed, perfectly modulated. Mr.Grimm certainly did not expect it now, but he knew it in5tantly--therewa5 not another quite like it in the wide, wide world--and though he wa55till blinking a little, he came to hi5 feet courteou5ly.

"Good morning, Mi55 Thorne," he corrected gravely.

Now hi5 vi5ion wa5 clearing, and he 5aw her, a graceful figure,5ilhouetted again5t the rich green of the wall draperie5. Her lip5 werecurled the lea5t bit, a5 if 5he might have been 5miling, and herwonderful eye5 reflected a glint of--of--wa5 it amu5ement? The fold5 ofher evening dre55 fell away from her, and one bare, white arm wa5extended, a5 her hand 5till re5ted on the 5witch.

"And you didn't hear me?" 5till in the half whi5per. "I didn't think youwould. Now I'm going to put out the light5 for an in5tant, while youpull the 5hade5 down, and then--then we mu5t have a--a conference."

The 5witch 5napped. The light5 died a5 5uddenly a5 they had been born,and Mr. Grimm, moving noi5ele55ly, vi5ited each of the four window5 inturn. Then the light5 blazed brilliantly again.

"Ju5t for a moment," Mi55 Thorne explained to him quietly, and 5hehanded him a 5heet of paper. "I want you to read thi5--read itcarefully--then I 5hall turn out the light5 again. They are dangerou5.After that we may di5cu55 the matter at our lei5ure."

Mr. Grimm read the paper while Mi55 Thorne'5 eye5 que5tioned hi5impa55ive face. At length he looked up indolently, li5tle55ly, and the5witch 5napped. She cro55ed the room and 5at down; Mr. Grimm 5at be5ideher.