The Secret of the Haunted Mirror - M. V. Carey [19]
“It sounds so solid,” he said. “It’s hard to believe, but there must be a door here.
And this is an exterior wall at the back of the house. There could be a door to the outside. That could be the way the ghost has been coming and going in spite of all the locks and bolts and bars. There has to be a secret exit!”
“But the house is built into the hillside,” said Mrs. Darnley. “There’s solid earth on the other side of that wall.”
“There could be a tunnel,” said Jupiter Jones. “It wouldn’t have to be large.”
“Or another room.” Jean pointed to the wall and her voice trembled. “Maybe that
… that thing is standing there listening to us.”
Jeff abruptly charged out of the library. Jupe heard him race to the kitchen.
Drawers and cupboards were opened and shut. Then Jeff came back carrying a heavy wooden mallet. “I don’t know what John uses this for,” he said, “but I know what I’m going to do with it if that thing comes out of the wall.”
“He may not be in the house now,” said Jupiter Jones. “There’s only one way to find out. We must discover how to open the door which I am sure is here.”
Mrs. Darnley sat down. “Jupiter, please be careful.”
“I am always careful,” said Jupiter Jones.
He went about his search in his usual methodical manner. Jean and Jeff helped him take books down, and poke and pry and twist and tap. For a while the task seemed futile. The wall behind the bookshelves showed no cracks or seams. The skirting-board was solid and immovable. The light switches were simply light switches, complete with the proper wires which were visible when Jupiter unscrewed the switch plates. Nothing turned, twisted, or gave way under probing fingers.
“There has to be a latch,” said Jupe at last. There must be a latch and it must be on this wall, but where?”
“Maybe it only opens from the other side,” said Jeff.
“No. Remember, Drakestar the magician had this house built. That door, however it opens, had to be built to his order. Now, Drakestar was one of the greatest magicians, and his most famous feat was a disappearing trick. Even after he retired, he would invite people to dinner here and perform his disappearing trick for them.
Tonight the ghost of Chiavo disappeared from this room. This must be the room Drakestar used when he entertained his guests, and that means that there must be a way to open the door from this side.”
Jupe stared at the bookshelves. “Oh!” he said Suddenly.
“What?” asked Jean.
“If nothing else works, the only thing we haven’t tried has to be the thing that will work. Those bookshelves are very sturdy. Were they here when you bought the house, Mrs. Darnley?”
“Yes, they’re built in.”
“And you have kept them well filled with books. Now, nothing happens when we press down on a shelf, but suppose we do this.” Jupe put his hand under the shelf where the smudge of makeup still showed and pushed up.
There was no sound, but there was a faint draught that made the candle flames dance. A section of the wall, shelving and all, swung away from the skirting-board.
No one in the room moved for a moment. All four stared at the opening in the wall. But no fearful being rushed out at them. They saw only a space, barely two feet wide. The far wall of the space was lined with concrete blocks which must have been the true exterior wall of the house.
Jupe felt Jeff close behind him as he looked into the narrow compartment between the walls. He saw dust and cobwebs, and then he saw stairs. They went down into inky darkness.
“A candle,” said Jupe. “Hand me a candle.”
Jeff got him one. Jupe paused for a second to examine the section of the wall which had opened. “No wonder it sounded so solid,” he said. “It’s made of lathe and plaster just like any well-built wall, but it’s hung on a steel frame. What a masterpiece!”
Jeff looked past Jupe and down the stairs into the blackness below. “Are you going down?” he whispered.
“You are most certainly not going down there!” cried Mrs. Darnley.
“I am sorry, but I think I must,” said Jupiter. “I am somewhat averse to solving only part of a puzzle.”
“Then