Original subtitles

I'm Book, and I run a bookshop. You must be here about the job.

You know where I've come from, don't you? I have a little hobby on the side,

I find it's taking me away from the shop more and more. Well, you must stay with

us, won't you, now that you've got the job?

What exactly is it you do?

I sell books.

Yeah, but that's not all, is it? Yesterday, out there at a bomb site.

So you don't think they died in an air raid?

Inkerman Street was already empty, wasn't it, Mr. Bateson?

Scheduled for demolition. It's a chaotic world, Jack.

I have a system.

Do you think it was suicide?

Why would a chemist kill himself with something as horrible as plastic acid?

It's murder.

There's a daughter, isn't there?

A right money -grabbing little cow.

And then she had the gall to run off with him.

My dad was convinced that Mickey was thieving.

Got the chemist's will through, sir. Daughter doesn't get a bean.

This is a sacred charge, you understand that?

I wouldn't ask this of you if I didn't think you were ready more than that.

That you were the one creature on this earth to whom I could entrust this.

This message must go to Trotty and to no one else. Is that clear?

Is that clear?

Good boy.

Off you go.

Morning. Morning.

Doc, Jay.

Can I help you?

Oh, yes.

With wallpaper, that is. It's a little early for that.

For what?

Never mind.

I'm looking for a Mrs. Book.

You found her?

Well, that's a crying shame. What is?

You're married, that is.

Can I help you?

Yeah, yeah, you're right.

Got a message from your husband.

Said you were having problems with your alternator.

Why? In the car.

It's what I do, see? Cars.

I see. I meant to book them for you, did I?

Yeah. Yeah.

I mean, no idea why I didn't go with someone more local, but I'm not saying

I've got to go where the work is, right?

Great.

Oh.

Got a light.

Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Somewhere around.

One minute.

Here we are.

So.

So you are a mechanic, Mr... Mickey.

Mickey Hall.

And, uh, yeah. Yeah, I've got a garage. My land.

All yours?

Well, no, me and the, um... Oh, yeah. Yeah, all mine.

Is he?

Excuse me a moment.

I need to lay my hands on a, well, find my car.

Right on, yeah.

Well, I ain't going anywhere, so...

The

very man.

Oh, good morning, Mrs Buck.

Morning, Eric.

I wonder if you'd be an absolute darling for me, Eric.

Can you beg for a lady?

As I recall, she lives a proud owner of a rather splendid daimler. Yeah, she's

got a car. Yeah, is she in? Can I just pop in to ask to borrow the car? No need

for that.

I'm sure she wouldn't mind.

It's just parked round the back. I'll get the keys for you. Thank you.

What's up?

Puncture, I think. As bald as Daddy.

I told him these wheels won't get me to Cambridge.

I don't suppose you could help me out?

Not really my department.

I'm just looking after the place.

I'd be most awfully grateful.

Oh, yeah, all right. I'll see what Mickey's got.

Thanks, Elvis. Bye.

There must be a repair kit back here somewhere.

I really appreciate this.

I like it because it puts them in those random places.

Thank you.

Hello, Dan.

Yeah,

nothing wrong with that.

The old man, I mean, he had enough trouble starting it. He didn't mention

Maybe I should put my specs on. Maybe.

Thank you very much, Mr Hall. That was quite a ride.

Yeah, not at all, love.

And, uh, any time you want to go a bit further... Sunday,

maybe?

Hmm.

Desperately tempting, though, that is. I find I'm washing my hair that evening.

Besides... Besides?

I think perhaps your dance card may soon be a little full.

Quick word, Mr. Rool?

We thought, Mr. Hall, that it was high time we had a little plan.

Listen, I know my rights.

Straight out of the block.

Disappointing. Dear me, Mr. Hall, one point deducted already.

Point what are you talking about?

Listen, you can't stick anything on me. There you go again.

Eh? Textbook.

Quotidian.

Banal. What?

You see, the inspector and I have been through this routine a hundred times.

Thousand. You have no idea how tedious it is having to listen to the same old

stock responses from gnarly old lags like something from the musical.

Hold your hand out, you naughty boy.

Hold your hand out. That's probably enough of that.

So here's the question that you would ask, were it not for your fear of me

dinging you.

Why would I want to kill poor Mr. Harkup?

Oh, why would I?

I wouldn't hurt a fly.

I never did it.

But you meant to go into the shop.

Yeah. Yeah, all right. I went there to talk things through, to reason with him.

Now me and Marula got a little one on the way. Oh, did you go with the express

intention of filching the jade elephant and replacing it? That's a dirty lie.

Oh, bravo.

Haven't heard that one in a while. Should put copper at the end, though.

That's a dirty lie. Copper is much more effective. But you ain't a copper, is

you? Oh, fair point. No, I ain't.

Isn't. Aren't.

But I do have a special letter from Churchill.

So? Anyway, you can't prove that I did that. No, but it's very probable you'll

miss. What happened then?

I waited outside the shop.

I knew he'd be in. He never goes anywhere except Mondays and Thursdays.

dominoes, down the ball.

I waited till well after seven, but there was no sign of him.

So you went into the flat?

No sign of him.

But first she come out. Who?

The char.

Mrs. Dredge.

Coming out a chemist, that's an old...

Shifty. Yeah, well, you know all about her. She had something in her coat.

Trying her best to keep it hidden.

Didn't let her see me, obviously.

When was this?

About six.

Now, go on.

Then someone else come.

I couldn't see him properly. What, me eyes and that?

Oh, yes, we've heard all about it. But it was a him.

I do know the difference, mister.

Your reputation precedes you.

He was all bundled up.

Scarf.

Overcoat.

After he left, I went to the flat.

The door was shut, but I know my way around a lock, so... In I went, and...

That's when I found him.

Marula's dad, that is.

Stoned it.

Naturally, you thought you should call the police.

Well, that wouldn't have been a very wise thing to do, would it?

I almost just licked it.

And then I remembered about the ornaments.

The jade figures.

A month ago, he told me about how precious they was. I thought no one was

to miss one of them, are they?

Alas for you, that wasn't quite the case.

I'm in a little chess set with me.

So I caught one.

Then I took off. Straight home, I swear.

I never killed Archibald. I never even touched him. He was dead when I got

there. All right, son. Maybe you're telling the truth. Maybe you're not.

But let me assure you, if you are lying, if you think you can take Scott any

hard for a ride, I'll come down on you so hard you won't be able to see

till Christmas.

I'll throw the bloody box at you.

Do we believe him?

Bent as a dog's hind leg.

Yeah, but is he a murderer, then?

I need to think.

Do you have time to queue?

I'm planning a casserole.

Vicious stopping, moaning love?

Chance would be a fine thing.

Come on, Enid, sharp now. It's not going to wrap itself.

Here you are.

She's new.

Out of the way, you. We're beer all bleeding day.

Right. Are you watching?

Over, over, under, under.

Here we go, lovely.

Thank you. Bye.

All right, come on in. Let's be having you.

So now to turn you vegetarian.

Our cat brought home a pigeon the other night.

And?

Well, Mrs Bliss was fully tempted.

And they had plenty of pigeons in the war.

And they run with a bit of pigeon.

Yeah. Yeah, I know, but now it's all over.

We want to weigh him a bit higher, don't we?

We are all of us in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the starlings.

Right, bugger this.

All right.

Excuse me.

Police business. Coming through. Coming through. Police business. Police

business. Thank you. Thank you. Sorry. Sorry, madam. Police business. Thank you

very much. Oi!

Won't you bloody turn like the rest of us? I'm so sorry, my only urgent police

business. One minute.

Oh, madam.

Sorry, I could just ask you to take a few steps outside.

Urgent police business.

Afternoon, Eric. Afternoon, sir.

Now, stewing steak.

I've kept it aside, sir. You are a prince amongst men.

Oh.

You've got something just there. Me?

Oh. Excuse me.

Powdered egg. Bit of a rush breakfast.

How's Sheila? Well, sir. Well.

She's driven up Sheffield. A nice family.

Yes.

Terrible about George Arkham.

Sadly is.

I knew I... I wager old Bassart won't shed any tears.

Huh? I never got on.

Many a run in during the blitz.

Arkham was a stickler for the rules.

Always on it, Mr. Bassart, for being too slack.

Blackout curtains, showing light, that sort of thing.

Might be a tick.

Right, then.

Where are we up to with the murders?

Murder? There's only one, as far as I know.

Ah, yes.

Well, Mrs. Dredge says she saw the cabinet at approximately 6pm.

We have only her word for that. Yeah.

But Mickey Hall did say he saw her leaving the shop around that time with

something in her coat she wanted to keep hidden.

And she has a strong motive. Now we know she inherits the knife.

So Harkup appears to have died somewhere between six and ten, according to Dr.

Calder. An awful lot could have happened in those four hours. Indeed.

Now, we're presuming the killer called round. No sign of forced entry.

So Harkup knew them?

Probably. I've told you this before.

Hear me out, Mr. Harker, please. It's about Marula.

I suppose you better come through.

So, he let them in.

There was some sort of chat.

The killer proceeds to pour prussic acid down his throat.

Harker croaks.

Literally, I should imagine.

But why did he take just the one piece? Why not grab the nut?

Then it would look like burglary. But he wanted to make it look like suicide.

There we are, sir.

Oh, bless you, Eric. Oh, um, anything for dogs?

I'll spoil you.

You do.

Would you like it, rats?

No, no, no. He won't mind.

Thank you.

Toodle -pip. Enjoy your day, gentlemen.

Cheerio.

Oh!

Hello. Mrs.

Dredge has motive and opportunity.

Mickey Hall, motive and opportunity.

What about Marula?

Mickey says the bundled up stranger is a man.

Then he would. If they were in it together.

Did they know that Harkup was going to disinherit them?

Hello, Jack.

Sir.

Not for you.

What have you done?

I've tied it up.

Tied it up?

Oh, dear.

Well, you said you wanted things cataloguing, so I needed to put it in a

order. You've only done these cells so far.

Yeah, sorry.

Takes time, you know.

Thank God.

Put it all back.

Eh? Put it all back just as it was. I told you I have a system.

You said that... Catalog it, I said, not desecrate it.

I'm sorry.

He said soonest men today.

Well,

I think I might have done something right.

You found something?

Yeah, I have.

It's been cleaned recently.

The residue you can see.

That's remains of silver polish.

Meaning?

Meaning that it got into the ground recently.

Probably dropped.

Or something far more sinister.

What are you getting at?

1665, year of the plague. Yeah.

Very specifically the year of the plague.

Not a year or two before.

Capital.

Too convenient.

Horribly. Where better to hide a tree than in a forest?

Eleven skeletons in the plague pit from the 17th century and the 12th from 1946.

Oh, bloody hell.

You said earlier, murders, plural.

Yes.

Linked? Oh, I should think so.

Top of the class, Jack. Really, I should give you the afternoon off to go to the

pub. So I will.

More specifically, the bull. The late Mr. Harkup used to play dominoes. Take

Nora.

Nora? I believe you've met.

She's good at this sort of thing.

You could learn a lot.

Ah.

Very much so.

What's that?

A list of addresses and a very particular question. I'd be ever so

you'd go on a little field trip for me.

All right.

If you cook tonight... I am.

Casserole. Oh, casserole.

Very irregular, this.

Kiddies on the premises.

I'm not a kid.

You look like one.

Appearances can be very deceptive.

I'll have a drink if that's what you're worried about.

I wouldn't make it worse.

She'll have a lemonade.

Oh, what?

And I'll have a bottle of Marl, please.

All right.

Thanks.

You'll have to get these.

What? I haven't got any money.

No.

Ask Mr. Book. He'll advance you your wages.

There you are.

Thanks. Take the change.

You were saying?

Mr. Harker.

That's right, son.

Every Monday and Thursday.

I sit just over there.

Mr. Wellbelover, the butcher. Mr. Bates, Hartley, our pea warden.

Mrs. Akers from the junk shop.

Mr. Cullen the tailor.

It's like happy families.

Mr. Toovey from the cobblers. Mr. Harcup.

Oh, God rest his soul.

Yeah.

Are you with the coppers, then?

In a manner of speaking.

I mean, I don't mind.

I was in the force myself back in the day.

Didn't seem the type.

You know, to do himself in. But then, do they ever?

I know.

We had a teacher.

Life and soul drowned herself in a weird old man.

How was he? When you last saw him?

Well, that's the thing, you see.

I saw Mr. Hargob just the day before.

Oh. Yeah.

Very out of character, it was.

Yeah, he marched in here in the middle of the day.

He was a man of very regular habits.

So, it seemed a bit... Queer.

Seemed like he had a lot on his mind.

Said he was sitting on a secret.

Obviously eating them up a bit.

Did you get it out of him? The secret?

Not at first, no.

More than my life's worth, he said.

He said that?

This very word, son.

And the next day... Dead.

Did he, um... Elaborate?

Yes, son.

Eventually, he did.

Now, Mr. Harkin was a very upright citizen.

You see, he suspected one of his pals was cheating at Spotties.

Spotties?

Spotties.

Dominoes.

That was smashing.

Well, Kat has used it.

Better than what you're used to.

Oh, yeah.

So, uh, you were saying, uh, scarlet fever?

Well, that's what brought us together, yes.

We met on the scarlet fever ward when we were, what, both 12?

And so, what?

You fell for each other right from the off?

Uh, it wasn't quite... Quite like that, no.

Huh.

Profitable day?

I'm not sure.

I put my foot right in it.

Oh?

I tried to tidy Mr Book's bookshelves.

Oh. I mean, I don't think I did too much damage, but... And then I was out and

about with Nora, detecting.

Well, it certainly put some colour in your cheeks.

So go on, then.

Well, if you didn't fall for each other straight away, when did you know?

You'll forgive me, my dear, but we'll have to know each other rather better

before such confidences are exchanged.

Oh, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to overstep. No, not at all. You

haven't.

I do hope we'll become fast friends, Jack.

It's complicated.

That's all.

Book and I weren't separable for years.

And then... life got in the way.

Love is where it falls, isn't that what they say?

Couldn't trouble you for a lie, could I?

Sorry, I... I don't smoke.

And were things more than formal between you and your employer?

I resent that question, Inspector.

Nevertheless. Well, I won't deny there was a degree of affection between

Mr Harkup and myself.

If you've been doing for someone all those years... Well, that's my point,

Trench. Is that all you were doing?

What my friend is trying to suggest... I know full well what he's trying to

suggest. What he's trying to elucidate, then, is whether this affection took any

more.

tangible form.

Well, what's it got to do with you?

Well, the fact is, Mrs. Dredge, certain new facts have come to light. Mr. Harker

gave the lot to you.

The shop, the whole estate, it's all yours.

Never.

I didn't see that coming.

Everything? Everything.

Is your son at home, Mrs. Dredge?

He's upstairs in bed.

A late riser.

A war hero.

His Wellington came down over Holland 44.

Oh, I know.

I'm sorry.

Nothing to be sorry for. He survived, didn't he?

Given that we don't believe Mr Harkup took his own life, you can see why that

leaves you in a rather difficult position.

Do you ever think I topped him?

The fact remains you're in a rather sticky position, Mrs Dredge. The new

would probably sign the witness.

Well, I don't know anything about that. But you could have done.

You could have found a draft when you were cleaning and decided to, you know,

speed things up a bit. What, by knocking off Mr. Ape? Yes.

Barmy. No, it's her you should be talking to. The ruler. And him, Mickey

Have you nabbed him? He is assisting us with our inquiry.

Oh, well, good.

Something, then. In fact, Mr. Hall's been most helpful.

He has? Yes.

Yeah, most helpful. In fact, he told us that he saw you leaving the chemist shop

the night of the murder.

There's no mystery there. I told you, I saw him. Leaving and trying your very

best to conceal something.

Bandages. I told you, for Elf.

He's trying to hide. He lost a leg, didn't he, your son?

How?

One of them worn and creased, the other almost completely smooth.

His prosthesis must need constant attention.

Painful, I should imagine.

Very, very painful.

Painful enough for morphine.

Why didn't you just ask Mr. Harker to help?

I couldn't.

Alf needs more than he's ever given by the doctor.

So I need some extra.

I didn't think Mr. Harker would notice when he did.

And he, as you, Mickey Hall, must have done it. I couldn't tell him it was me.

He was such a stickler, you see, for the rules.

Well, how could I tell him I'd had away with drugs from his own shop?

You've no idea what it's like, the pain.

My poor Alf.

He had dropped in on the pretext of getting bandages and instead stole more

morphine.

And Mr Harcourt was alive when you left him. I swear on my son's life.

You'll excuse me.

Yes, of course.

Oh, and, uh... When do I get it, then?

Beg pardon?

The money.

Not that event.

No, life is hardened, Mrs Dredge, but not a killer.

Then who did it?

Them. Two murders, remember?

Them, then.

Look, I suppose it'd be too straightforward for you to just, you

me. It would be my... Well, no.

Not my pleasure.

You're going to need backup, Inspector.

What?

Oh,

no, no, sorry, we're just...

Good evening, sir.

Eric.

Oh, we're just closing, I'm afraid.

That's all right.

How's Sheila?

Well, you asked me that, Mr. Book.

Oh, yes.

She's in Sheffield.

What day did she drive up there?

Oh, it was, um, Thursday.

Yes, Thursday.

Nice.

Well, if there's anything special I can help you with, sir, you know, I've got a

lot on. But she couldn't have done that.

Could you heck when Trotty borrowed her car on Friday?

Oh, Mr. Well -Beloved. I didn't mean to do her in.

Go on.

Things hadn't been right for some time.

Always raring we were. And then... I met her.

Inking. Ah, an old fool and a young beauty.

It's a very old tale.

When did you know Mr. Book, if you don't mind me asking?

I suspected right away that something was off.

And that was confirmed when I discovered that some of the bones in the plague

pit were newer, though you'd made an effort to age them.

Gravy branding.

Sheila uses it on her legs.

Couldn't afford to get annoyed. Plus the knife marks on them are very

distinctive. I checked your handiwork.

That bone you gave me for Dog.

So, for the sake of a future with Methenid Clag, you sent your wife to

maker.

You then found yourself confronting the murderer's oldest dilemma.

Getting rid of the corpse.

It would have been simple for you not being a stranger to the notion of

things up.

Unfortunately, Inspector, people can tell the difference between the bones of

hogs and homo sapiens.

So I think that after removing the flesh from your unfortunate wife, cleansing

her.

who still needed to dispose of her skeleton.

Which is where the caustic soda comes in. Precisely. Freely available at any

chemist.

Getting rid of her body, are you?

Oh, yeah.

Yeah. Drains.

It's for the drains, George.

Terrible pole.

Alkaline hydrolysis.

Was that what you were going for?

I'd read about it, see.

One of the things you pick up in this trade.

Caustic soda.

Dissolves flesh.

I'd used it before to get rid of carcasses, you know.

It didn't work properly. You know, lots of... Lots of bones

left.

I didn't know what to do, and then... And then... Bathard mentioned the

skeletons that he'd found.

It wasn't for the Luftwaffe. We'd never have known those poor devils were under

our feet all these years.

You told the cop this?

Not just yet. No rush, I suppose, after 300 years.

I've put a tarp over the crater.

Yes. Well, you know what kids are like. They probably run off with the bones

and... Give them to a dog.

Anyway, cheerio.

Amen.

As I said, where better to hide a tree than in a forest?

Who would notice?

Oh, you.

Then there was this, of course.

Eric here, though exhibiting a lively scale at improvisation, is not an

imaginative man.

No offence.

I'll go for it. More game.

Mate is mate.

You rather overdid it by planting the coin in the plague pit.

That rang an alarm bell straight away.

So armed with a description of a suspect, my wife made a short but

tour of the local curio shops.

How do you know he hadn't gone further afield to get the coin?

Unimaginative, remember?

Anyone conceiving so clumsy a clue would never stray far from their own

neighbourhood.

Eric was very much in the frame when I noticed the clincher.

In the queue.

At the butcher's.

They did what?

Powdered egg.

Oh, you've got something. Just there.

Excuse me.

Powdered egg. Bit of a rushed breakfast.

Such an intimate thing to do. With absolutely no acknowledgement from Mr.

-Beloved. Uh -huh.

I thought.

Uh -huh.

How's Sheila?

Well, sir, well. She's driven up to Sheffield.

A nice family.

I inquired with Sheila's family in Yorkshire. They've seen neither hide nor

of her, of course.

So, it all looked rosy.

And then?

I've got the note.

I suspected something of the kind.

Some sort of vague threat.

Urgent that we talk.

I don't want to have to take this to the authorities.

I hope we can sort this matter between ourselves.

Clark.

And you assumed it was about the murder?

Well, of course.

What? Then it wasn't? No.

What?

Then what was it about?

Domino's. What?

Mr Harkup was a stickler for the rules, as we know. He suspected you of cheating

at his favourite pastime.

That's all it was. No, no, no, no.

No, it had to be a threat.

About Sheila.

What else could it be?

So?

What happened next?

I had no idea I could buy him off.

With cash?

With beef.

So you went round?

I was scared.

You know, scared of what he might say.

What if he wouldn't listen to reason?

And there was poison everywhere, all round.

And so I kept him talking.

I just needed to tell the truth.

George, just tell the truth, Eric.

And then I took my chance.

I got hold of him, and then I poured the poison down his throat.

Right. You poisoned him, did you? Oh, yes, yeah, it was horrible.

Anything else?

No.

You see, that's very interesting, Eric.

Because before he was poisoned, George Harcup was struck over the head.

And the weapon left a bloody residue in his hair. You remember there was blood

but no wound, Inspector?

Yes. Dr Calder analysed it for me.

Cow's blood.

Ah.

And you would have known that, Eric, if you'd been the one who'd hit him with a

joint of beef. No.

Yes. No, no, no, no. I remember now. I did hit him. I don't think so.

But who did?

Obviously neglected to mention the part where she clobbered Mr. Harkup. Was it

her idea?

From the start? No!

She was...

Enid found

me after I'd strangled.

After Sheila died.

She just took charge.

We didn't know what to do.

Enid was so calm, methodical, and

we reckoned we was going to be okay until...

What the hell can we do now?

Leave this to me.

Oh.

Plan to finish the job.

Make it look like suicide.

She caught prussic acid down poor Mr.

Harcub's gut.

Don't we just say that I did it?

Please.

I mean, I'll swing, won't I? But he did.

The law must take its course.

I'm sorry, Eric, I truly am.

But I'm even more sorry for George Hargup.

And poor Sheila.

Oh.

Oh.

Right, it's all more charged up. Sign out.

You'll be taken to a home, you sir.

Very good of you.

Thank you, Mrs. Book.

She said you might be a while.

Quite a tale.

Wish I could have sat in on it.

I'm pushing my luck as it is.

What exactly did you do in the war?

It must have been pretty big for you to get that letter from Churchill.

And for the inspector to let you have run of the shop like this. Now, now,

don't be nosy.

Where would the fun be if everyone knew everything, eh?

Besides, I hardly have a run in the place, not with a laughing boy there

hovering the whole time. He's just waiting for his chance to collar me.

Slightest malfeasance.

Surely you're a model of respectability, Mr. Book.

You'd be surprised.

They got Ivan a velo for his petrol coupons.

All right, we're out.

Out you get.

Eric?

Eric!

Hey,

no, no, no contact.

Get in. That's enough of that.

That's enough of that.

Run for Eric!

Run for Eric!

Eric, don't be a poor man! Eric! Oh,

hells bells.

That way.

Come on.

Where did he go?

There.

Crater.

This is... Was Ingram Street.

Which means...

Mr. Bayshart's fastidiousness has come good at last.

If the ruddy thing's still working.

All right, well, beloved.

Come quietly.

There.

Eric, stop.

Don't lose him.

Brian, I'm going in.

Let me talk to him.

Where are you going to run to, eh?

Nothing to be done.

Where will you go?

You can give up today or tomorrow, Eric.

It's inevitable.

The law must take its course.

That's what you said.

You're not stringing me up.

Eric, no.

No. You sure do that to me.

I've seen beasts go. It's not always kind.

Eric, stop.

What about Enid?

You had to leave her to face the rope alone.

You're right.

She did all this for me.

Yes.

All for me.

I can't leave her to face the music, can I?

If we're going to go, we go together.

be bared.

For him the gibbet shall be built.

For him the stake prepared.

I see him up there with Mr. Book.

And then... Wallop. He just fell.

Dropped like stone. I mean, he must have broke his neck.

Bad business.

Very sad.

Well, This is a treat.

Pineapple chunks.

Haven't had these before the war.

So what now?

What do you mean?

We just go back to selling books.

Well, that's the job, Jack. Just Jack.

Yeah, but that was... Yeah.

It was so bloody exciting.

Can't be like this all the time, young man. And anyway, who are you?

You haven't really said.

Jack Blunt.

I was brought up in an orphanage, like I told you.

Made acquaintances with the wrong sort.

I did time for it. Oh?

Yeah, oh.

I was the driver for a smash and grab up Mayfair Way.

They got away with a load of mint coats.

I got away with two years.

I missed the war.

Some of it, anyway.

And then... I get a letter from the Prison Reform Society.

An address for a job.

This address.

Well, there we are then. No need to mention it again.

Yeah, but why me?

Why'd you pick me?

Altruism.

What? Giving a second chance to someone felt like the right thing to do. Yeah,

but you don't know me from Adam. Oh, he was hopeless, wasn't he, Trotty?

Always wandering around the shop in the altogether.

Getting his fig leaf trapped in the till. I'm serious.

I mean, bloody hell, I am grateful and all that, but... It's nice here.

It's really nice, but... Books is a raft on the great turbulence sea of life.

You mean books are a raft?

No, no, books, this place, my shop.

Don't dwell on it, Jack. Just accept it. It's your second chance.

But why me?

Why not?

You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.

Shakespeare.

Mae West.