Under The Net - Iris Murdoch [57]
drunk. They were certainly tet�-tet� 'You're sure Belfounder won't make trouble?' Sammy asked then. 'I tell you it's a gentleman's agreement,' said Sadie. 'And you're no gentleman!' said Sammy. And he nearly choked himself laughing. By now it was clear to me that I had done right to eavesdrop. If ever two people were plotting something, Sadie and Sammy were. But what was it all about? Who was it who had to be caught in London? What did make sense was this, that Sadie was engaged in double-crossing Hugo, doubtless because she was jealous of his preference for Anna. I must hear more, I thought, and sat there with my eyes popping out. But as I did so I noticed something rather annoying. The back of Sadie's house was close to the back of a house in the next street. In fact the two houses might be said to overlook each other. The opposite house had a fire escape which was the twin of Sadie's, and between these two erections was a distance of only some fifteen feet. Now my eavesdropping position necessitated my staring straight into one of the rooms of this house. That is, my head had been turned more or less in that direction, though I had been far too preoccupied to perceive anything up to the moment when I noticed that two women were watching me closely from the room opposite. One of them wore a red pinafore, and the other was a powerful-looking woman with a hat on. I dropped my eyes, and was brought sharply back to the conversation behind me by hearing my own name mentioned. I missed that sentence. The next one was from Sammy, who said, 'As a script it certainly has everything.' 'Good for Madge!' Sadie said. 'She can pick a winner.' 'Too bad she didn't back him too!' said Sammy. More laughter. 'You're sure he couldn't make a case?' Sammy asked. 'Not a clear one,' said Sadie, 'and that's all that matters. He probably has nothing in writing, and if he ever had he'll have lost it. 'He can refuse us permission to use it, though,' said Sammy. 'But, don't you see,' said Sadie, 'that doesn't matter. All we need the thing for is to get H. K. to sign on the dotted line.' All this was of absorbing interest, though I still couldn't for the life of me see what it meant. At this point there occurred another distraction. The two women opposite had opened their window wide and were looking at me with considerable suspicion. It is hard consistently to avoid the gaze of someone fifteen feet away who is trying to catch your eye, especially when there is nothing else in the vicinity which you can plausibly be thought to be looking at. I smiled politely. They consulted each other. Then the one in the hat called out, 'Are you all right?' This was very unnerving. It required an iron discipline to prevent myself from getting up and running. I prayed that Sammy and Sadie hadn't heard. Meanwhile I nodded my head vigorously and directed a happy smile in the direction of the two ladies. 'Are you sure?' she asked again. Almost in despair I nodded, and added to my smile such gestures indicative of total well-being as it is possible to perform in a sitting position with one's back against a door. I shook hands with myself, held up my thumb and index finger in the form of an 0, and smiled even more emphatically. 'If you ask me, I think he's an escaped loonie,' said the second woman. They retired a little from the window. 'I'm going to tell my husband,' I heard one of them saying. Sadie and Sammy were still talking. By now my ears were nearly leaving my head and gluing themselves on to the door behind me. 'What are you so nervous about?' Sadie was saying. There was no doubt who was using whom in this connivance of unsavoury characters. 'Present him with the star and the script and your contracts, and we have a flying start. Belfounder hasn't anything on us legally; and if he starts making complaints I can make plenty of counter-complaints about the way I was treated. As for young Donaghue, we can buy him any day of the week.' This annoyed me so much I nearly got up and banged on the door. But at once Sammy replied, 'I don't know. These fellows have funny