The Opposite House: A Novel — page 167: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

162 Lhe Opposite Flouse. ingly, his voice husky from the wine. ‘“ Wait, sweetheart, and try whether I'll tell. I assure you that you never heard anything quite so base. Yes, Brand is a rascally fellow, but we must laugh at it, for no head so clever will deck the gallows. And he’s nearly ready for them. Ha, ha, ha!” “ And the story?” said Heloise, forcing herself to endure his presence. “Yes, the story,” stammered Wikke, raising the glass again to his lips. ‘‘ The story was a good one. Baroness von Rotterswyl, the black ghost with the pretty daughter, was young once herself, and said to have been as beautiful as the girl who 1s wor- shiped by the handsome Prince of the Mill. You probably know about that, eh? Yes, yes! She was visiting a friend in some owl’s nest of a castle. I’ve forgotten the name. And this friend was betrothed to our Doctor Brand; but he wasn’t known by that name then—no, indeed; he called himself ‘ Herr Count.’ Moreover, he had lived in Stuttgart as though he had the wealth of the Indies at his dis- posal. Where he got his ducats Beelzebub could tell better than I. Old Baroness von Rotterswyl loved the brother of this fortunate francée, a young dandy, named Lewin, if my memory serves me. But one day the bomb burst. Brand took a fancy to the beautiful diamonds of his future—” “Aha!” said Heloise, Comiclboolkkxs C@