So I kept the others where they were by a nudge and a pinch, and held my breath a moment, straining my ears to catch the closing of the door below.

I did not hear that.

But I did catch a sound that otherwise might have escaped me, but which now riveted my eyes to the door of our room.

Some one in the silence, which followed the trampling on the stairs, had cautiously laid a hand on the latch.
The light in the room was dim.

Mirepoix had taken one of the candles with him, and the other wanted snuffing.