Then they went in.
Wang immediately appeared in front, and, squatting on his heels, began
to potter mysteriously about some plants at the foot of the veranda.
When Heyst and the girl came out again, the Chinaman had gone in his
peculiar manner, which suggested vanishing out of existence rather than
out of sight, a process of evaporation rather than of movement. They
descended the steps, looking at each other, and started off smartly
across the cleared ground; but they were not ten yards away when,
without perceptible stir or sound, Wang materialized inside the empty
room. The Chinaman stood still with roaming eyes, examining the walls as
if for signs, for inscriptions; exploring the floor as if for pitfalls,
for dropped coins. Then he cocked his head slightly at the profile of
Heyst's father, pen in hand above a white sheet of paper on a crimson
tablecloth; and, moving forward noiselessly, began to clear away the
breakfast things.
Though he proceeded without haste, the unerring precision of his
movements, the absolute soundlessness of the operation, gave it
something of the quality of a conjuring trick. And, the trick having
been performed, Wang vanished from the scene, to materialize presently
in front of the house. He materialized walking away from it, with no
visible or guessable intention; but at the end of some ten paces he
stopped, made a half turn, and put his hand up to shade his eyes.
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