“Yes,” said the servant, looking hard at Tom.
“Then I’ll come in. Tell her her brother wishes to see her. Come in, Tom.”
Tom followed the captain, the servant continuing to eye her suspiciously. They entered the parlor, where Captain Barnes took a seat on the sofa, motioning Tom to sit beside him. Tom obeyed, surveying the sofa with some curiosity. The families in the tenement house with whom she had been on visiting terms did not in general possess sofas. She had sometimes seen them in furniture stores, but this was the first time she had sat upon one.
“What are you thinking of, Tom?” asked the captain, desiring to draw her out.
“Does your sister live here?”
“Yes.”
“She’s rich, isn’t she?”
“No, she makes a living by keeping boarders. Perhaps you’d like to board with her.”
Tom laughed.
“She don’t take the likes of me,” she said.