“Good,” returned Jondrette. “Tomorrow I will take you out to dine with me. We will have a duck and fixings. You shall dine like Charles the Tenth; all is going well!”

Then he added:⁠—

“The mousetrap is open. The cats are there.”

He lowered his voice still further, and said:⁠—

“Put this in the fire.”

Marius heard a sound of charcoal being knocked with the tongs or some iron utensil, and Jondrette continued:⁠—

“Have you greased the hinges of the door so that they will not squeak?”

“Yes,” replied the mother.

“What time is it?”