The Young Duchess; or, Memoirs of a Lady of Quality — page 297: what you’re looking at

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THE YOUNG DUCHESS; OR, MEMOIRS OF A LADY OF QUALITY. CHAPTER LIV. THE CORPSE. Mrs, GRILLS threw off her bonnet and shawl—she adjusted her wig, or false front, whichever it might be—and then she drained at a gulp, and without winking, the glass of brandy which Pon- chard had just set before her. Mr. Grills helped himself to a second; and then they both looked at the Frenchman as if to ask him to explain his business. “The matter must be entirely between us three,” said Ponchard; “and I should not like ito have that girl Hester listening to what we say.” “Tl tell her to go to bed,” said Mrs. Grills, rising from her seat. “ Do nothing that may tend to excite her sus- picions,” -interjected Ponchard, “or make her curious to pentrate into what is going on. I think she already seemed to eye me strangely when I expressed a wish that you two would re- turn. ” ‘Leave me to manage the girl, ” said Mrs. Grills: and she issued from the room. “Ts it werry important ?” said Mr. Grills, fix- ing his eyes upon the Frenchman. ‘Most important,” was the response. ‘ And money: to. be earned by it!” ‘That's your sort then,” said Grills. ‘ Any- thing for money !” “‘ Anything ?” repeated the Frenchman: ‘‘ did you say anything ?’—and now in his turn he looked very hard at his companion. ‘Well, anything—yes—all according to the price,” rejoined Grills. “You know that I’m not werry partikler; for when you had that bit of a surgery-place down in the Old Kent Road 7 “TI was just thinking of it, Grills,” interjected Ponchard. ‘I remember the night you brought me the dead body——” “Ah! and a precious stormy night it was too,” said the hideous-looking man. ‘Me and my brother Jasper was wet through to the skin. Bless me! how it did rain—and thunder and lighten too! q? “ Rather a nasty night for you totransact your body-snatching business: ; and rather an awful one,” added Ponchard, ‘‘for me to make the dis- covery that I did. Murder’s work—eh ?—unmis- takable symptoms of death from poison ?” “ Well, sir,” interrupted Grills, “when you came and told me about it, I was smoking my pipe with Jasper—you recollect—and what you said struck us both all of a heap——” “And yet you must have been prepared for some such a result,” exclaimed Ponchard. “You know, my good fellow, you never played the re- surrectionist with that corpse at all: but the man died here—in this very house!—and how he did die, I failed not to discover.” ‘* And like a good gentleman as you are,” said Grills, “‘ you promised not to make any stir about the business—you didn’t want to get me, or Jasper, or the old ’ooman into trouble; so you just quietly held your tongue.” * And you promised,” said Ponchard, looking Grills again most fixedly in the face, “‘ that if ever I should want a friend to render any ticklish ee 283 ‘bit of service, or help me out of a trouble, I might come to you. Well then, I am now here to put you .to the test. But still I do not ask you to serve me for nothing:—you shall have twenty golden sovereigns for your help in the business.” The ruffian’s eyes twinkled joyously at this announcement ; and he helped himself to another glass of brandy. Just as he had tossed it off, his wife re-entered the parlour; and as she re- sumed her seat, she said, ‘‘ I have made that mat- ter all right. Hester is more than half tipsy— and I have persuaded her to go to bed.” ‘“So much the better,” observed Ponchard. “T am half afraid of that girl.” “The gentleman has got summut of 2 werry partikler nature for us to do, my dear,” said Mr. Grills to his better half; ‘‘and what’s more agree- abler tidings still, is that there’s twenty yellar boys to be got by it.” “And a good night’s work too!” said Mrs. Grills. “TY think that it will be more than one night’s work,” observed Ponchard. ‘ But this must de- pend upon circumstances. Now, are you sure that girl is not listening ?—for she is of such a strange flighty disposition, I would not for the world have the secret entrusted to her keeping !” Mrs. Grills cautiously opened the door—lis- tened—shut it again—and then returning to her seat, assured the Frenchman that all was quiet and. safe. ‘Now, then, for explanations,” said Ponchard. “ Last night there was some quarrelling amongst a few of us; and a friend of mine—a gentleman who has been two or three times to this house with me——” “You mean the Pole with the handsome beard?” asked Mrs. Grills, ‘‘ What’s his name again? Ivan something———I always liked that name of Ivan Tt’s a sweet pretty ‘un. Ah! Zadooski !” '¢ Zadouski — that’s it,” rejoined Ponchard. | “Yes—I mean him. But J’m afraid he was a sad scoundrel—and therefore I am not at all likely to weep when | tell you that he is gone!” ‘““Run away ?” asked Mrs. Grills. ‘‘ No— gone out of the world,” “Oh! that’s different,” she said, coolly refer- ring to the brandy-bottle. “The gentleman observed there was quarrel- ling,” remarked Mr. Grills; ‘and so I suppose the truth is the Pole with the handsome beard got a topper on the head ‘“‘No—it was a knife in the heart,” interrupted Ponchard: “but it’s of no consequence how he did die, since dead he is. Ah! I should add that I do not exactly want to usurp the merit of having put the fellow out of the way; and therefore I should like you to understand that it was not my hand which dealt the blow—but it was a certain Karl Petronoff, whom you are likely to see pre- sently, Mr. Grills, when you come to take your share in the business.” ‘And what share is that?” asked the man. ‘¢ But I s’pose I can guess. It’s to get rid of the stiff un? Well, if that’s all, and twenty pounds is the reward, I say done, and let’s shake a hand on it at once.” ‘To be sure,” said Mrs, Grills; ‘and wet the bargain with a drain:”—whereupon she suited the action to the word. mr ee oO COMO Colin