Eddie failed to catch the revelation at the moment; he was too busy with his own miseries. But the harshness of Skip’s tone had the usual effect; it dried up his terror. There was more to be feared from Skip’s contempt than from the mysteries of the old house in the dark below them. “Oh, God,” Eddie said, “there for a minute . . . I don’t know. It just hit me.”

“What are you going to do now?”

“I’ll be okay. Let’s go.”

“Sure.” Skip stepped closer still and his fist shot out. The blow to Eddie’s midsection was small and sharp, and it hurt. Eddie grabbed his stomach; his tongue curled out over his teeth; breath whistled in his nostrils. “Now,” Skip said. “Now we’ll go.”

Eddie stumbled after him. Karen was down there, outside the back door; Eddie could make out that she’d taken off her coat and shoes. She padded toward them. “Be quiet! She’s in bed but I heard her turning over; I don’t think she’s asleep.”

Skip was looking up at the house. “Where?”

“The corner there upstairs.”

“Open windows?”

“No. She’s scared of the night air. Leaves the bathroom window open, the light on in there. I don’t know why, maybe because she’s nervous.”

“What the hell are we beating our gums for out here? Let’s go in,” Skip said.

“I don’t dare turn on a light,” Karen whispered. “You’ll have to follow me. Don’t fall over anything.”

“Just lead me to the dough,” Skip said. “I won’t make any racket.”

They crept into the house. This was a windowed porch. Eddie could see the shining white enamel ledges of laundry trays, a black door open in a white wall; he smelled disinfectant and soap.

“This is the washroom,” Karen whispered. “We’ll go through the kitchen and on to the hall. There’s a big table in the middle of the kitchen, pots stacked on a shelf underneath. For God’s sake don’t touch that table.”

“Where’s Stolz’s room?”

“I’ll have to show you.”

Feeling his way in the dark, Eddie saw with incredulous wonder how stupid they had been. He and Skip should have known all about the house, every obstacle; should have managed to look it over during the old woman’s absence, or drawn a map from Karen’s description. Now they had to be led along as if blind; and above him he felt the old woman on her bed, wide awake and waiting to hear them stumble. He fought panic again, glad that Skip couldn’t see.