Read Online The Toff and the Deadly Priest by John Creasey - Free Book Online Page A

‘”Ave another, Mr. Ar?”
    â€œNot yet, thanks,” said Rollison. “Don’t you know anything about Keller’s game?”
    â€œI only knows that he’s got a mob and is runnin’ a racket,” declared Bill. “I dunno what the racket is. Tell yer somefing, Mr. Ar.”
    Rollison waited.
    â€œTell yer somefing wot will surprise yer,” declared Ebbutt. “’E’s ‘ad a go at arf-a-dozen other swine. Blokes I wouldn’t-a’ minded bashin’ meself. Mr. Ar, that’s a fact. No business o’ mine, then, seein’ as he was goin’ fer swine. But some of the things ‘e did to them – it would make yer scalp crawl, Mr. Ar. It would reely. There was one fella – Tiny Blow, you know Tiny Blow? ‘E was inside fer lootin’.” Rollison nodded. “Well, Tiny come out about four munce ago,” went on Ebbutt. ‘”E started thro win’s weight about. Keller hadn’t started, it was the first time I ‘eard of ‘im. I did hear that Tiny started a fight in the Docker, and waited fer Lucy – been at the Docker ten yers, Lucy has.” Ebbutt sniffed. “Don’t know that I think much of her, but Tiny didn’t ought to ‘ave waited for ‘er. Bad thing for ‘im he did, because four of Keller’s mob was waiting for him. He’s still in the ‘orspital. If it ‘ad been anyone else but Tiny, I woulda’ bin sorry for ’im.”
    â€œAnd the other cases have been as bad?”
    â€œMore or less,” assented Ebbutt. “Except that I thought he was goin’ too far when he started on this parson bloke, Kemp.” Ebbutt sniffed again. “I got nothin’ against Kemp, but he oughta know that he didn’t oughta come down to a place like this. He’s a torf. Don’t take me wrong, Mr. Ar!” exclaimed Ebbutt, hurriedly. “I never meant nothin’ personal!”
    â€œNo offence taken, Bill!”
    â€œThen that’s all right,” went on Ebbutt, but elaborated the point. “I wouldn’t like yer ter think I was bein’ personal; there are torfs an’ torfs.” On the first utterance, he managed to give the word an astonishingly contemptuous ring; on the second, one of unveiled admiration. “Well, there you are! When you ask me to lend a ‘and, I was only too ‘appy, Mr. Ar. Funny thing,” he added, reflectively, “I wouldn’t ‘ave expected Kemp to come to you, ‘e looks the kind to run to the dicks.”
    â€œWhat do you know about Joe Craik?” asked Rollison.
    Ebbutt finished his beer, summoned Charlie and demanded a refill, wiped his lips gingerly, and then turned his one open eye on Rollison.
    â€œDon’t get me wrong, Mr. Ar. There’s persons an’ persons. Goin’ to church never did no one any ‘arm wot I can see, except it made hypocrites aht’ve some o’ them. But I’ve ‘ad some good boys, very good boys, from the church clubs, scouts an’ boys’ brigades an’ things. I don’t hold wiv goin’ to church meself, though I don’t mind a good Army meeting sometimes; they’ve got a bit of go, the Army. If it wasn’t for them always ‘alley uya4ng an’ arskin’ you to confess yer sins up in front’ve everyone, I wouldn’t mind the Army. My own missus wears the uniform,” he added, somewhat shamefacedly.
    â€œShe’s got to keep you in line somehow,” said Rollison, lightly.
    Ebbutt grinned, then winced.
    â€œDoan ‘arf sting,” he complained, absently. “Yes, I agree, Mr. Ar. She has somefink ter put up wiv’, but wot I was saying is, I’m not perjudiced against churches an’ things. Some persons is sincere, some isn’t, and I ‘aven’t got no time for them that isn’t. But I never bin able to make up me mind about