Page:James Hopper--What happened in the night.djvu/196

184 sued the old man, with acrid voice. He paused again with hand on the door-knob, his small eyes peering about the shop with malevolent scrutiny, peering at the dusty bottles on the shelves, vaguely golden and red in the weak candle-light, at the jars of crystals, the packages of herbs hanging from the black beams. "Humph!" he growled, mollified and yet uneasy. "Everything is well, is it? Everything is well?"

"Everything is well," answered the apprentice; "everything, master. I will watch."

"Well, good-night," said the old man. "Good-night. And sweep early in the morning. Good-night."

His arid hand at last turned the knob. He took one step and seemed to drop into a hole, so black was it outside. For a moment there sounded loud the drumming of the rain upon his cloak, then the door slammed upon his disappearance, setting in motion the bell, which immediately began a rusty ding-dinging.

Jean remained, nose in the air, watching the bell as though he did not like it; then, when finally it was stilled, gave a big sigh and turned away. He lowered the two lamps that burned behind the red and the green bowl in the window, slid the light of his candle inquisitively among the shelves, into the obscure corners of the