Red went purple in the face, and his strange eyes shone with rage. He stared first at Markhoff, then at Simmy and Jake. Markhoff looked uneasy, but Simmy and Jake looked back insolently.

“You — you — you dare to come here when I told you to keep away!” he shouted. “You’ve BEEN paid. You can’t blackmail me for any more money.”

What he would have said next nobody knew because from up the spiral stairs there came yells and screams and the noise of someone apparently trying to batter down a door.

“That’s that girl, I suppose,” muttered Markhoff. “What’s up with her? She’s been quiet enough before.”

“We’d better get her out now and go,” said Red, his face still purple. “Jake, go and get her. Bring her down here, and knock some sense into her if she goes on screaming.”

“Fetch her yourself,” said Jake, insolently.

Red looked at Markhoff, who immediately produced a revolver.

“My orders are always obeyed,” said Red in a suddenly cold voice. “Always, you understand?”

Not only Jake scuttled up the stairs then but also Simmy! They went to the locked and bolted room at the top and unlocked the door. They pulled back the bolt and door. Simmy stepped into the room to deal with the imprisoned girl.

But he stopped dead and gaped. He blinked, rubbed his eyes and gaped again. Jake gaped too.

“Hallo, Dad!” said Jo. “You do seem surprised to see me!”

Chapter Twenty-Two

Jo is very smart

“Jo” said Simmy. “Well, of all the… well… JO!” Jake recovered first. “What’s all this?” he said, roughly, to Simmy. “What’s Jo doing here? How did she get here? Where’s the other kid, the one we caught?”

“How do I know?” said Simmy, still staring at Jo. “Look here, Jo — what are you doing here? Go on, tell us. And where’s the other kid?”

“Hunt round the room and see if you can find her!” said Jo, brightly, keeping on her toes in case her father or Jake was going to pounce on her. The two men looked hurriedly round the room. Jake went to a big cupboard.

“Yes — she might be in there,” said Jo, enjoying herself. “You have a good look.”

The two bewildered men didn’t know what to think. They had come to get George — and had only found Jo!

But how — why — what had happened? They didn’t know what to do. Neither of them wanted to go back and tell Red. So they began to search the room feverishly, looking into likely and unlikely places, with Jo jeering at them all the time.

“Better take the drawers out of that chest and see if she’s here. And don’t forget to look under the rug. That’s right, Jake, poke your head up the chimney. Mind George doesn’t kick soot down into your eyes.”

“I’ll lam you in a minute!” growled Jake, furiously, opening a small cupboard door.