see. It’s only the living tissue I’ve changed, and only for as long as I’m alive. … I’ve been in the house three hours.”
“But how’s it done?” began Kemp, in a tone of exasperation. “Confound it! The whole business—it’s unreasonable from beginning to end.”
“Quite reasonable,” said the invisible man. “Perfectly reasonable.”
He reached over and secured the whiskey bottle. Kemp stared at the devouring dressing gown. A ray of candlelight penetrating a torn patch in the right shoulder, made a triangle of light under the left ribs. “What were the shots?” he asked. “How did the shooting begin?”
“There was a real fool of a man—a sort of confederate of mine—curse him!—who tried to steal my money. Has done so.”
“Is he invisible too?”
“No.”
“Well?”
“Can’t I have some more to eat before I tell you all that? I’m hungry—in pain. And you want me to tell stories!”
Kemp got up. “ You didn’t do any shooting?” he asked.
“Not me,” said his visitor. “Some fool I’d never seen fired at random. A lot of them got scared. They all got scared at me. Curse them!—I say—I want more to eat than this, Kemp.”
“I’ll see what there is to eat downstairs,” said Kemp. “Not much, I’m afraid.”
After he had done eating, and he made a heavy meal, the invisible man demanded a cigar. He bit the end savagely before Kemp could find a