Читать книгу Payment Deferred. Psychological Thriller онлайн

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‘Confound you kids!’ he said furiously. ‘Why on earth aren’t you in bed?’

Neither child spoke. The doom was close upon them again, they knew, and this time it was more than could be hoped for for another new arrival to postpone it, as had happened so miraculously yesterday. But if they kept quiet and pretended to be closely occupied with their work it might be all aright. They buried their noses in their books. Marble could only see the tops of their heads, moving a little as they pored over their writing.

‘Bah!’ he said. ‘Don’t act about like that. Shut up those books and go to bed. At once, now.’

Under more favourable circumstances they would have protested that it was not nearly bedtime yet. They should have pointed out that it was only a little after seven o’clock, and they were entitled to another hour at least. But they knew, in the intuitive manner of children, that this time the less they said the better for them. They began silently to pack up their books.

‘Go to bed! Go to bed!’ raved Mr Marble.