As she uttered the words, there fell a heavy footstep in the sanded passage below, and the sound of a man's cough came up to them.
Nick wheeled. "Hi, Briggs! Is that you?"
"Briggs it is," said a thick voice.
Nick descended the stairs with Olga behind him, and encountered the owner thereof at the bottom. He was a large-limbed man with a permanent slouch and a red and sullen countenance that very faithfully bore witness to his habits. He stood and regarded Nick with a fixed and somewhat aggressive stare.
"Where's the missis?" he said.
"That's just what I want to know," said Nick.
Briggs uttered an uneasy guffaw as if he suspected the existence of a joke that had somewhat eluded him. His eyes rolled upward to Olga, and back to Nick.
"Well, she ain't 'ere seemin'ly," he remarked.
"Don't you know where she is?" demanded Nick.
Briggs grinned foolishly. "That's tellin'!" he observed facetiously.