'
'How do you know Vandeloup was in at twelve?' asked Slivers, still
unconvinced.
'Drat the man, what's he worryin' about?' rejoined Miss Twexby,
snappishly; 'I let him in myself.'
This clearly closed the subject, and Slivers arose to his feet in
great disgust, upsetting Billy on to the floor.
'Devil!' shrieked Billy, as he dropped. 'Oh, my precious mother.
Devil--devil--devil--you're a liar--you're a liar--Bendigo and
Ballarat--Ballarat and Bendigo--Pickles!'
Having thus run through a portion of his vocabulary, he subsided
into silence, and let Slivers pick him up in order to go home.
'A nice pair you are,' muttered Martha, grimly, looking at them. 'I
wish I had the thrashing of you. Won't you stay and see par?' she
called out as Slivers departed.
'I'll come to-morrow,' answered Slivers, angrily, for he felt very
much out of temper; then, in a lower voice, he observed to himself,
'I'd like to put that jade in a teacup and crush her.'
He stumped home in silence, thinking all the time; and it was only
when he arrived back in his office that he gave utterance to his
thoughts.
'It couldn't have been either of the Frenchmen,' he said, lighting
his pipe. 'She must have done it herself.'
CHAPTER XVI
MCINTOSH SPEAKS HIS MIND
It was some time before Mrs Villiers recovered from the shock caused
by her encounter with her husband.
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