Читать книгу Charles Peace, or The Adventures of a Notorious Burglar онлайн

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Peace entered. A solitary person was in the apartment. This was Cooney.

“Well,” said Peace, offering his hand, “we meet again once more. How goes it with you?”

“Precious bad—​jolly bad; haven’t got a stiver. Am bust up—​that’s how I am.”

Peace took hold of one of the ricketty wooden chairs, which he drew towards the fire, and sat down beside his quondam pal.

“You managed to give ’em the slip, then?” said Cooney, with a chuckle. “But the old un’s grabbed.”

“So I’ve heard. It was a bad night’s work altogether.”

“Aye, that it was.”

“How did you manage to get away?”

“I gave ’em the double,” returned the tinker, with a grin. “I’ll tell yer all about it another time, if so be ye’re interested in a miserable bloke like me, which aint at all likely, seeing as how yer a-keeping company with the hupper classes.”

There was a tone of irony in the man’s manner which jarred upon the feelings of Peace, who, however, thought it best to take no notice of it.

“We’d better have something to drink first, and then I can hear what you have to say,” remarked Peace, as he touched the bell.