light meant that he had returned.
"I wonder what kind of mood he's in," muttered Johnny as he shoved the creaky iron gate open. "For the last couple of days he hasn't been much fun to live with."
"No, he sure hasn't!" said Fergie with a shake of his head.
When they opened the door of the parlor, they got a shock: The professor sat in an armchair smoking one of his smelly Balkan Sobranie cigarettes. And across from him, in another chair, sat the burly, bearded man who had been watching them from the alley the night before.
"Good evening, boys!" said the professor, waving cheerfully. "I'd like you to meet my brother Humphrey, who is supposed to be dead."
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CHAPTER EIGHT
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Humphrey Childermass stood up, and the boys got their first good look at him. He was tall and broad, with ruddy cheeks and a grayish beard sprinkled with black hairs. The wrinkles around his eyes showed that he was an old man. In his teeth he clenched the stem of a briar pipe that sent forth curls of fragrant smoke.
"Greetings, lads!" he boomed as he stepped forward to shake their hands. "As my charming brother has pointed out, the reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated."
"He faked his death," said the professor tartly. "Apparently he decided that the world was getting to be too much for him, so he went into hiding. He has come back from the grave because he thinks he can help us. And in case you're wondering, he has developed his powers of ESP. That's how he knew what we were up to."
Johnny and Fergie stared in amazement. They were too flabbergasted to speak.
Humphrey motioned for the boys to sit down. He puffed at his pipe and looked thoughtfully out the window. Finally he spoke. "I know you boys will have trouble understanding this," he began, "but I have been interested in the case of the De Marisco Knights for a long time."
"The who?" said Johnny and Fergie at the same time.
Humphrey laughed. "The De Mariscos were a family of pirates and warriors who once owned the island of Lundy, which is in the mouth of the Bristol Channel, not far from here. They built a castle on the island and terrorized the people for miles around. They were ruthless and cunning men who thought that looting and killing were delightful things to do. Well, a few of them went a bit further than ordinary villainy. Six of them decided to sell their souls to the devil."
Johnny was astonished. "Why... why would they do a thing like that?" he asked hesitantly.
"For the usual reasons," the professor put in. "Power. They could become invisible and fly through the air. They could read your mind and possess your body and use it for awful purposes. As you might guess, these knights had to do some pretty nasty things to get these powers, but they wouldn't let anything stand in their way. They wanted to become superhuman beings. But during the Middle Ages, good people got together and decided to put an end to their activities."
Fergie looked mystified. "How did they do that?"
"No one is sure how it was done," answered Humphrey. "But according to the old stories, they were placed under a magic spell and trapped in an underground room with thick stone walls. Unfortunately one of the six knights got away. He died a natural death, but his spirit wandered the earth restlessly, waiting for a chance to set his fellow knights free. As far as I can figure out, the spirit is the thing that calls itself Dr. Rufus Masterman."
Johnny and Fergie gasped. They looked at each other and wondered if Humphrey could possibly be telling the truth.
"In case you're doubtful," the professor added, "Humphrey and I have put our information together, and we think we're right. The legends tell of a magic stained-glass circle that had something to do with the imprisonment of these knights. And they say that the knight who escaped was named Rufus."
Johnny felt a chill, and he thought of the haggard face that he had seen outside his window. "Have... have the knights been
"I wonder what kind of mood he's in," muttered Johnny as he shoved the creaky iron gate open. "For the last couple of days he hasn't been much fun to live with."
"No, he sure hasn't!" said Fergie with a shake of his head.
When they opened the door of the parlor, they got a shock: The professor sat in an armchair smoking one of his smelly Balkan Sobranie cigarettes. And across from him, in another chair, sat the burly, bearded man who had been watching them from the alley the night before.
"Good evening, boys!" said the professor, waving cheerfully. "I'd like you to meet my brother Humphrey, who is supposed to be dead."
Â
Â
Â
CHAPTER EIGHT
Â
Â
Humphrey Childermass stood up, and the boys got their first good look at him. He was tall and broad, with ruddy cheeks and a grayish beard sprinkled with black hairs. The wrinkles around his eyes showed that he was an old man. In his teeth he clenched the stem of a briar pipe that sent forth curls of fragrant smoke.
"Greetings, lads!" he boomed as he stepped forward to shake their hands. "As my charming brother has pointed out, the reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated."
"He faked his death," said the professor tartly. "Apparently he decided that the world was getting to be too much for him, so he went into hiding. He has come back from the grave because he thinks he can help us. And in case you're wondering, he has developed his powers of ESP. That's how he knew what we were up to."
Johnny and Fergie stared in amazement. They were too flabbergasted to speak.
Humphrey motioned for the boys to sit down. He puffed at his pipe and looked thoughtfully out the window. Finally he spoke. "I know you boys will have trouble understanding this," he began, "but I have been interested in the case of the De Marisco Knights for a long time."
"The who?" said Johnny and Fergie at the same time.
Humphrey laughed. "The De Mariscos were a family of pirates and warriors who once owned the island of Lundy, which is in the mouth of the Bristol Channel, not far from here. They built a castle on the island and terrorized the people for miles around. They were ruthless and cunning men who thought that looting and killing were delightful things to do. Well, a few of them went a bit further than ordinary villainy. Six of them decided to sell their souls to the devil."
Johnny was astonished. "Why... why would they do a thing like that?" he asked hesitantly.
"For the usual reasons," the professor put in. "Power. They could become invisible and fly through the air. They could read your mind and possess your body and use it for awful purposes. As you might guess, these knights had to do some pretty nasty things to get these powers, but they wouldn't let anything stand in their way. They wanted to become superhuman beings. But during the Middle Ages, good people got together and decided to put an end to their activities."
Fergie looked mystified. "How did they do that?"
"No one is sure how it was done," answered Humphrey. "But according to the old stories, they were placed under a magic spell and trapped in an underground room with thick stone walls. Unfortunately one of the six knights got away. He died a natural death, but his spirit wandered the earth restlessly, waiting for a chance to set his fellow knights free. As far as I can figure out, the spirit is the thing that calls itself Dr. Rufus Masterman."
Johnny and Fergie gasped. They looked at each other and wondered if Humphrey could possibly be telling the truth.
"In case you're doubtful," the professor added, "Humphrey and I have put our information together, and we think we're right. The legends tell of a magic stained-glass circle that had something to do with the imprisonment of these knights. And they say that the knight who escaped was named Rufus."
Johnny felt a chill, and he thought of the haggard face that he had seen outside his window. "Have... have the knights been
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