Page 1381 - les-miserables

The woman darted forward and picked up the bit of plas-
ter. She handed it to her husband.
‘Where did this come from?’ demanded Thenardier.
‘Pardie!’ ejaculated his wife, ‘where do you suppose it
came from? Through the window, of course.’
‘I saw it pass,’ said Bigrenaille.
Thenardier rapidly unfolded the paper and held it close
to the candle.
‘It’s in Eponine’s handwriting. The devil!’
He made a sign to his wife, who hastily drew near, and
showed her the line written on the sheet of paper, then he
added in a subdued voice:—
‘Quick! The ladder! Let’s leave the bacon in the mouse-
trap and decamp!’
‘Without cutting that man’s throat?’ asked, the Thenar-
dier woman.
‘We haven’t the time.’
‘Through what?’ resumed Bigrenaille.
‘Through the window,’ replied Thenardier. ‘Since Ponine
has thrown the stone through the window, it indicates that
the house is not watched on that side.’
The mask with the ventriloquist’s voice deposited his
huge key on the floor, raised both arms in the air, and
opened and clenched his fists, three times rapidly without
uttering a word.
This was the signal like the signal for clearing the decks
for action on board ship.
The ruffians who were holding the prisoner released him;
in the twinkling of an eye the rope ladder was unrolled out-

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