The scratching continued for a few moments, and the door swung open.

A tall, thin figure of a man entered, the door closed behind him, and with some further scratching he locked it.

Then the man turned and stared at Ned.

Ned stared with equal intentness at him.
The figure that he saw was thin and six feet four; the face that he saw was thin and long.

The face was also bleached to an indescribable dead white, the effect of which was heightened by the thick and fiery red hair that crowned a head, broad and shaped finely.