‘Now,’ said Richard, ‘we can talk at our ease here; we shan’t be overheard.’
‘What does your honour want to talk about?’ asked Micky, with a great air of innocence.
‘You can drop the “your honour,” and all that rigmarole, my friend, and tell me who you really are. To prevent any unnecessary untruths, I may as well tell you at the start that I found Goron’s Memoirs in the pocket of your coat in the harness-room yesterday morning. From that moment I knew you were playing a part here.’
‘Like you,’ said Micky quickly.
‘Yes—if it pleases you—like me. What I want to know is, are you a detective?’
‘And what I want to know is,’ said Micky, who had abandoned most of his Irish accent, ‘what are you?’
‘Let us not beat about the bush,’ said Richard impatiently. ‘You’re a decent chap, so am I. I will begin by confessing that I am a private inquiry agent employed by the British and Scottish Bank.’
‘Oh,’ said Micky, ‘I knew it was something of that sort Have you ever heard of a detective named Nolan?’
‘What! the Nolan?’ asked Richard.
‘The same,’ said Micky.