Page 318 - A Jacobite Exile

and had tried to force his way in.

"So she put this parlour at our disposal, and, as I have got the shutters up
and the curtains drawn, there is no fear of his noticing the light, for, as we

may have some hours to wait, it is more pleasant to have a candle, than to
sit in the dark."

"Does she come down to let him in?" Harry asked.

"No, sir, the door is left on the latch. She says he finds his way up to his
room, in the dark, and the candle and a tinderbox are always placed handy
for him there. We will take our shoes off presently, and, when we hear

footsteps come up to the door and stop, we will blow out the candle and
steal out into the passage, so as to catch him directly he closes the door. I

have got handcuffs here, some rope, and a gag."

"Very well, then. I will undertake the actual seizing of him," Charlie said.

"You slip on the handcuffs, and you, Harry, if you can find his throat in the
dark, grip it pretty tightly, till Tony can slip the gag into his mouth. Then he

can light the candle again, and we can then disarm and search him, fasten
his legs, and get him ready to put in the cart."

The hours passed slowly, although Tony did his best to divert them, by
telling stories of various arrests and captures in which he had been

concerned. The clock had just struck five, when they heard a step coming
up the quiet street.

"That is likely to be the man," Tony said. "It is about the hour we expected
him."

He blew out the candle and opened the door quietly, and they went out into
the passage. A moment later the step stopped at the door, the latch clicked,

and it was opened. A man entered, and closed the door behind him. As he
did so Charlie, who had marked his exact position, made a step forward and

threw his arms round him.