Uneasy Money · Chapter 15 (2/2)

“Poor man! I must have given him a jolt! But why didn’t you tell me about him before?”

“Oh, I don’t know.”

“Oh, well, I’m not inquisitive. There’s no rubber in my composition. It’s your affair.”

“You won’t tell Dudley?”

“Of course not. But why not? You’ve nothing to be ashamed of.”

“No, but⁠—”

“Well, I won’t tell him anyway. But I’m glad you told me about him. Dudley was so eloquent about burglars that he almost had me going. I wonder where he rushed off to?”

Dudley Pickering had rushed off to his bedroom and was examining a revolver there. He examined it carefully, keenly. Preparedness was Dudley Pickering’s slogan. He looked rather like a stout sheriff in a film drama.