Evening star., 1940-01-16
CHAPTER II,

clare helped Lii with the dlSneS,
while Frau Weber returned to the
shop downstairs. While they were
waiting for her to come back, Lili
got out photograph album and
with considerable pride showed her
pictures of her childhood.
Those were happy days, then"
she said, although mother and
father always were talking about
the hard times that followed the
war. At least we were together, and
had good times together. Picnics
in the park, excursions into the
country"
"Your father-is he" Claire
stopped in sudden embarrassment.
"He is dead" Lili said, duly.
"Oh, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't
have mentioned tit was stupid OF
me-"
That's quite all right. Mother and
I, somehow, have become used to
it now. 1t seems so long ago" She
turned over several pages of the al
bum. "See, here he is in his uni
form. That was taken after the
World War. He went all through
that and suffered only one wound.
Shrapnel in his left arm, and it
had to be amputated. That's why
we happened to open up the little
shop downstairs and buy this fiat.
Father was unfit for anything but
light work after his injury. 1t handi-
capped him more than most men
because he had been so active"
A Considerate Hostess.
She chartered on, turning the
pages sometimes rapidly, sometimes
slowly as she stopped to recall some
happy experience a snapshot sug-
gested. Lii seemed glad OF
chance to talk to some one, and
Claire had feeling that she had
been bottled up for years, with few
friends and daring to confide in
virtually no one.
Claire glanced at her watch when
she heard two short signals on the
buzzer, and was surprised to find
that it was nearly 1890. Frau
Weber seemed worn and tired when
she came in, and Immediately or
dered the girls to bed.
"Lili, you will be a wreck tomor-
row." she scolded and added apollo
getically to Claire. You see, she
has to get up so early and the
work at the factory is so hard"
"It's been so good, Mother, to have
some one to talk to-some outsider
to whom I'm not afraid to talk for
fear that my words will be twisted
and carried to the police"
Go to bed now, dear" her mother
directed. I'll be in soon. Oh, yes,
you'd better get out nightdress for
Fraulein Clara. She came without
baggage, you know"
Claire protested, but Frau Weber
insisted on giving up her room to
her for the night.
I'll show you why" she ex.
planned. Its the only safe place
In the fiat. Come with me-"
The Secret Room.
She led the way into the room.
went over to the large clothes chest
and swung open the door. Inside
she reached up and pushed up on
the third hook from the left on
which clothes were hung. There
was a slight click and then Frau
Weber pushed gently to the left.
The back panel of the big chest
slid quietly aside, presumably run
ming on a track back to the other
side of the massive piece of furni-
ture.
Through the gap, Claire could
see the wall of the room, papered
exactly as all the rest, with a de-
sign OF large cabbage roses. Frau
Weber reached up and touched one
that was exactly back of where the
hook had been in the high chest,
and the wall suddenly disappeared
as though by magic.
Follow me-" the woman said, and
Claire stepped into the wardrobe
and into small room opened up
by the disappearance of the wall.
Frau Weber flashed on a light and