The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 210: what you’re looking at

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204: crept down the staircase. Not a board creaked under her footsteps; and she was careful to pre- vent the rustling of her dress as she passed by Lettice Rodney’s door. She carried no light in her hand; and thus, silent as a ghost—stealthy and mysterious as an evil spirit—in the deep darkness did she continue her way. She gained the ground: floor—she peeped through the keyhole of the strong room—and thence she proceeded to the kitchen. Cautiously opening the back door, she put on her shoes again and issued into the yard. The back gate was speedily unfastened—and two persons, who were lurking in readiness there, passed into the premises. These were Barnes and his delectable acolyte Bill Scott. Mrs. Webber led them into the kitchen; and there she struck a light,—placing her finger upon: her lips the mo- ment the glare of the lucifer flashed upon the pre- vious darkness. “ Hush!” she said in the lowest whisper : must be cautious—the lady is come.” “‘ But has the old ’un paid her over the blunt ?” inquired Barney with a look of apprehension. “ No—I am certain he. has not,’ responded Mrs. Webber; “there are deeds to sign first, of all—or rather it was intended there. should be,” she added, with a glance of diabolical significancy. * Ah! but they won’t be, though,” rejoined Barney the Burker, bis own looks full of a still more hideous and terrible meaning. “I say, by the bye, when I think of it—did I understand you just now, marm, that you mean to cut away from the house directly the business is done P” “ To be sure,’ answered Mrs. Webber,—‘‘ when the swag is properly divided. But of course we shall all three go different ways—and you may depend upon it that though an old woman, I shall keep on the tramp the, whole night, and then get up to London to-morrow in the best way that I can.” “ But there'll be a terrible hue and ery,” re« marked the Burker, ‘and it won’t do for you to think of laying concealed at Jack Smedley’s house you'll be sure to get nabbed.” * And I don’t mean anything of the sort,” an- swered the vile woman: “TI shall get over to France, and never come back to England again. But we must not stand gossiping here : we must get to work.” “ Here’s the tools,’ said the Burker, with a grin, as he produced a long dagger from one pocket and a pistol from the other—while Bill Scott also displayed a couple of pistols. “ But this is the thing that we must do the business with,” added Barney, as he restored the pistol to his pocket and felt the point of the dirk with his forefinger. “Come,” said Mrs. Webber; “and mind if Mrs. Rayner up-stairs happens to overhear a noise —if there is any struggling on the old man’s part, and she gets alarmed and comes down or cries out S “ Then we must do her business also,” rupted the Burker, with a ferocious look. Mrs. Webber nodded with approving signifi- cancy ; and as a thought struck her, she said, “ As I came down stairs, I peeped through the key- hole and saw the old man sitting with his back to the door. If we should be lucky enough to find him in the same position now, the work will be ‘we inter- ” yr —— THE MYSTERIES OF THE COURT. easy enough; for he is too deaf to hear the door opening or to catch the sound of your footsteps. But you had better both of you take off your shoes.” This counsel was at once followed by the Burker and Bill Scott; and Mrs. Webber, with the light in her hand, now led the way from the kitchen. On reaching the passage where the door of the strong room was, she deposited the candle upon a step of the staircase, and then peeped through the keyhole. As her countenance was again turned towards her two villanous accomplices, its expression of fiendish satisfaction made them aware that circumstances continued favourable to their murderous project. Mrs, Webber now prozeeded to raise the latch of the door as_ noiselessly_ as she possibly could; and as.she gently opened it, Barney and Bill Scott beheld the old man seated. with his back towards them.. He had on his dressing-gown, and was laced in an arm-chair at the head of the table. A single candle .lighted the scene within the room its beams were reflected by the yellow gold which the miser was counting.’ A couple of bags were likewise in front. of .him—as well as an open account-book, which showed the precise state of Mrs. Rayner’s affairs, calculated. and balanced to the minutest fraction. So absorbed was Anthony Pollard in his task, that even if he had been less deaf than he was, he would perhaps have still failed to hear the opening door or the tread of the murderers’ steps—shoeless and steely. os that were approaching from behind. Barney the Burker advanced first, with his long sharp dagger in his hand: Bill Scott was imme- diately behind him, grasping a pistol to be used in case of emergency. Mrs. Webber remained at the door,—behind which she half. concealed -her- self; for though iniquitous enough to play her part in the cold-blooded deed, she nevertheless instinctively recoiled from its too near contem- plation. Stealthily advanced the Burker towards the unsuspecting old miser; and when at the back of his chair, the villain’s dagger was raised to deal the murderous blow.. At that very instant Mrs. Webber gave a start; and the word ‘“ Hush!” being almost involuntarily uttered, sounded au- dibly from her lips. ‘Bill Scott, instantaneously catching it, laid his hand upon the Burker’s shoulder to make him aware that there was some- thing wrong, at the same time that he glanced back towards Mrs. Webber. But it was too late! —the diabolic galvanic force was already in the Burker’s arm—the weapon was descending with a terrific power—deep down did it plunge between the shoulders of the unfortunate old man—a groan burst from his lips—and he fell forward a corpse, with his head upon the table. “Tt was nothing, after all,” said Mrs. Webber, the instant the blow was dealt. “I thought I heard some one moving about up-stairs.” But here we must interrupt the thread of our narrative for a brief space, to return to Lettice Rodney. It will be remembered that when Mrs. Webber was summoned to the parlour in order to conduct Lettice to her chamber, she was seized with astonishment on finding that her master was not alone, and that the lady whom she took to be Mrs. Rayner, had been admitted during her temporary absence from the house. That lock COMICHOOKS.COnM