"Two ladies outside, sir--waiting to see you. But they
don't want to come in, sir, unless they know who's here--don't want to
meet no strangers, sir."
Purdie jumped to his feet, and putting the man aside looked into the
dimly-lighted corridor. There, a few paces away, stood Zillah--and, half
hidden by her, Mrs. Goldmark.
"Come in--come in!" he exclaimed. "Nobody here but Andie Lauriston and
Melky Rubinstein. You've something to tell--something's happened?"
He ushered them into the room, sent the hotel servant, obviously in a
state of high curiosity about these happenings, away, and closed the door.
"S'elp me!" exclaimed Melky, "there ain't no other surprises, Zillah? You
ain't come round at this time o' night for nothing! What you got to tell,
Zillah?--another development?"
"Mrs. Goldmark has something to tell," answered Zillah. "We didn't know
what to do, and you didn't come, Melky--nobody come--and so we locked the
house and thought of Mr. Purdie. Mrs. Goldmark has seen somebody!"
"Who?" demanded Melky. "Somebody, now? What somebody?"
"The man that came to her restaurant," replied Zillah.
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