The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 57: what you’re looking at

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46 one service in my lifetime—e service that gives me the means of death! And now go—leave me! I am no puling fooljsh creature that can descend to slobbecrirg farewells and sickly leave-takings But stay one moment! You need not tell Bab that I hinted in my frenzy at the idea of be- traying either you or her: for I should not have done it —— jt was mere madness at the time! And now go.” She waved her hand to her son-in-law, who opening the little trap at the door of the cell, called for the turnkey who was stationed at 9 grating at the end of the passege; and that func- tionary speedily arrived to afford Jack Smedley egress frum the prisoner’s chamber. CHAPTER XCI. THR SUBTEERANSEAS. Ir was evening, some five or six days after the in- terview of Jack Smedley with his mother-in-law ; and bis wife Barbara sate alone in the little par- lour at their abude in London. She was reflect- ing upon what her husband had done at Liverpool, THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. ascertain what the sound was. Then, as slowly recovering courage she looked around, sbe started on beholding the great black cat lying on a chair and gazing at her with its large green glassy eyes. She remembered the ominous instinct with which her husband’s terrified imagination had endowed the animal on the night of Preston’s murder; and she recoiled from the glare of those eyes. The sound was renewed: this time she became aware that it was a knocking et the beck door; and snatching up the candle, she proceeded from the room to answer the summons. “Tt must be one of those Scotts—or else the Burker himself,” she thought as she threaded the passage: “unless it ig Jack come home and got himeelf into some scrape—for nobody else but one of these would come to the back doar af this time of the evening.” She opened the door; and the light flashed upon the hang-dog countenance of Barney the Burker. Bab Smedley exhibited no surprise: for, 9g the reader has seen, she was more or leas prepered for such a visit. Shp hastily closed the door, and led the way into the parlour before g single word was spoken between them. The shutter was already fastened outside the window, over which the cur- : tains inside were drawn; end thus there wag Ro and bestowing an equal part of her attention on | fear of the man’s presence in that room being per- the glass of spirits-and-water which stood on the ceived from without. Filling table. Bab’s tumbler com- She had been rendered aware of Jack / pletely up to the brim with the alcholic Jiquor, the Smedley’s successful mission to Mrs. Webber, in-, Burker drained the contents at a draught; and esmuch as he had written from Liverpool to bis | beyond 9 slight brief winking of the eyes, no sign wife—but in a very guarded strain, for fear of the | on bis part indicated the strength or depth of the communication being intercepted. They had how- i potation. He threw himself upon a seat,—saying, ever agreed beforehand between themselves on! “So here J am at last, Bab, once more in London: some phrase that was to be introduced ip case! though I can’t say as how I’m werry sound in of success, while another phrase wag to indicate | limb—or that I’m over sure of being safe in re- failure. The former had found its introduction into the body of the epistle; and amidst a series of canting sentences and studied hypocrisies, the goldbeater thus found the means of setting his wife’s mind at rest on the one grand important point. Upon this she was cogitating—and dividing, as we have said, her attention between the subject of her thoughts and the liquor to which she had be- come so wedded. It was nine o'clock; and the servant-girl who attended for a certain period during the day, entered to inquire whether any- thing more were wanted from her this evening. A response was given in the negative: the gir} took her departure; and Mrs. Smedley was now alone in the house. She knew not how it was— she could not account for it—but assuredly did it seem as if a chill smote her the instant the front door closed behind that girl. Bab Smedley was by no means the woman to yield to the influence of vague presentiments or ungrounded alarms: but she liked not this feeling which took posses- sion of her—neither could she shake it off. She ap- plied herself with additional vigour to the spirite- and-water: potations appeared to do her no good -—on the contrary, they seemed to rénder her all the more nervous. Contemptuously as she had been wont to look upon her husband, she wished he was at home now for companionship’s sake. All of a sudden she fancied she heard a noise in the tack part of the house; and for the first time in her life Bab Smediey was seized with such a terror that she could not rise from her chair to spect to that personal liberty which is the right of every free-born indiwidual.” “ And where do you come from P” inquired Mrs. Smedley, wha had leigure to observe the careworn haggard sppearance of the Burker, as well as to judge that he was sinking with fatigue. “Ah! where do I come from ?—that’s the ques- tion!” he responded with 9 certain degree of rough bitterness in his tone. “ Wheresomever there's a quiet ditch thata man may lay down in when he’s got no bed—wheresomever there’a 8 lonesome haystack that a houseless wanderer may snatch a snoose under—wheresomever there’s fields and woods and all sorts of unfrequented places as far as possible from the towns and villages which @ chap doesn’t dare enter for fear of seeing @ printed description of hisself with ‘A Hundred Pound Reward’ in big letters a-top, posted up agin the walls,—there’s the places from which I come.” Having concluded this piece of eloquence after . his own fashion, the Burker looked Mrs. Smedley very hard in the face for nearly a minute, as much ag to say, “ Well, what do you think of that ?”— and then he brewed himeelf a tumbler of spirite- and-water, which he proceeded to drink at a more moderate rate than the previous one. “Perhaps you would like something to eat P” suggested Mrs. Smedley. “Well, now you mention it, I think I should like summut,”” answered the Burker; “though only a minute back I fancied I was past cating: for I ain't broke my fast since eight o'clock this morning—and then I should have got nuffin if I GDoo <S co