Edgar Wallace

The Secret House Edgar Wallace

Book Excerpt: ... He was chuckling, partly at Poltavo's surprise, partly at some amusing thought."Well done, Poltavo," he said; "excellently fenced.""Did you hear?" asked the Pole, surprised in spite of himself."Every word," said the other. "Well, what do you think of it?"Poltavo pulled a chair from the wall and sat down facing his chief."I think it is very clever," he said admiringly, "but I also think I am not getting sufficient salary."The veiled man nodded."I think you are right," he agreed, "and I will see that it is increased. What a fool the woman was to come here!""Either a fool or a bad actress," said Poltavo."What do you mean?" asked the other quickly. Poltavo shrugged his shoulders."To my mind," he said after a moment's thought, "there is no doubt that I have witnessed a very clever comedy. An effective one, I grant, because it has accomplished all that was intended.""And what was intended?" asked Mr. Brown curiously...