His voice suddenly jumped several octaves, his tone filled with surprise.
Even his expression was one of shock, his mouth hanging wide open.
He stared, dumbfounded, at the rocking chair Miss Sterling was lying on.
'Did I remember wrong?'
'I could've sworn this wasn't in the house just a moment ago. How did it suddenly appear?'
'Could it be that I wasn't looking carefully and just didn't notice it?'
He wondered about it, but it just didn't seem possible.
'It's a big object, not some little trinket. It should have been easy to spot. There's no way I could have missed it.'
Besides, he was well aware of his own habits. Whenever he entered a new environment, he would subconsciously size it up, scanning his surroundings for any dangers or anything he could use to his advantage.
So, from the moment he woke up, he had been secretly studying the abandoned house from the corner of his eye.
