"Well, I'm not sure that I shall want you after
all, Bunny."
"Why not?"
"If the front door's only on the latch, and you're right about the
lock, I shall walk in as though I were the son of the house myself."
And he jingled the skeleton bunch that he carried on a chain as
honest men carry their latchkeys.
"You forget the inner doors and the safe."
"True. You might be useful to me there. But I still don't like
leading you in where it isn't absolutely necessary, Bunny."
"Then let me lead you, I answered, and forthwith marched across the
broad, secluded road, with the great houses standing back on either
side in their ample gardens, as though the one opposite belonged to
me. I thought Raffles had stayed behind, for I never heard him at
my heels, yet there he was when I turned round at the gate.
"I must teach you the step," he whispered, shaking his head. "You
shouldn't use your heel at all. Here's a grass border for you: walk
it as you would the plank! Gravel makes a noise, and flower-beds
tell a tale. Wait - I must carry you across this."
It was the sweep of the drive, and in the dim light from above the
door, the soft gravel, ploughed into ridges by the night's wheels,
threatened an alarm at every step.
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