FOR just a minute Grace Lee paused before the blank door of the safe, then she passed around to an unused speaking tube in the neighboring wall. Halting before it, in low but distinct tones she began to sing the famous aria¹ from "The Magic Flute²."
 
All agog³, with eyes starting and ears alert, the man behind listened and watched. Nothing happened.
 
Then came a change. Gradually her voice rose, sweet and piercing, till it reached that famous F in alt so rarely attempted, so exciting to the ear when fairly taken and fairly held. Grace Lee could take it, and as it hung, sweet[98] and deliciously thrilling in the air, Beau Johnson saw, to his amazement⁴, though he was in a way prepared for it, the heavy safe door slip softly ajar. She had done it with her voice. How, he could only vaguely⁵ guess. He was better educated than most of his class, or he could not have understood it at all. As it was, he laid it to the vibration⁶ caused by a certain definite note acting⁷ on some delicate mechanism⁸ set in accord with that note, which mechanism starting another and a stronger one gradually led up to that which drew the bolts and set the door ajar. Whether his theory were true or not mattered little at the moment. The event for which he waited had been accomplished⁹ and accomplished before his eyes. To profit by it was his next thought, and to this end he held himself ready for the spring which had laid latent in his[99] eyes since he first saw her advance toward the safe.
 
She was ignorant of his presence. This was evident from the jaunty¹⁰ way she turned from the tube, still singing, but in a desultory¹¹ way, which showed that her thoughts were no longer on her music. But she was not so engrossed¹² that she did not see him. The moment that her face turned his way, her eyes enlarged, her body

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