Большие надежды. Уровень 2 / Great Expectations

He wiped blood from his face with his ragged sleeves: “I took him! I give him up to you! Mind that!”

The other was bruised and torn all over.

“Take notice, guard – he tried to murder me,” were his first words.

“Tried to murder him?” said my convict, disdainfully. “Try, and not do it? I took him; that’s all, I dragged him here. He’s a gentleman, if you please, this villain. Now, the Hulks has got its gentleman again, through me!”

The other one still gasped,

“He tried – he tried to – murder me.

“Look here!” said my convict to the sergeant. “I tried to kill him? No, no, no.”

The other fugitive, who was evidently in extreme horror of his companion, repeated,

“He tried to murder me!”

“He lies!” said my convict, with fierce energy. “He’s a liar, and he’ll die a liar. Look at his face. Do you see him? Do you see what a villain he is?”

“Enough,” said the sergeant. “Light those torches. All right. March.”

My convict never looked at me, except that once.

“I wish to say something.”

“You can say what you like,” returned the sergeant, “but you’ll have opportunity enough to say about it, and hear about it, you know.”

“A man can’t starve; at least I can’t. I took some food, at the village over there[15 - over there – вон там].”

“You mean stole,” said the sergeant.

“And I’ll tell you where from. From the blacksmith’s.”

“Halloa!” said the sergeant, staring at Joe.

“Halloa, Pip!” said Joe, staring at me.

“It was some food – that’s what it was – and liquor, and a pie.”

“Do you miss a pie, blacksmith?” asked the sergeant, confidentially.

“My wife does, at the very moment when you came in. Don’t you know, Pip?”

“So,” said my convict, without the least glance at me, “so you’re the blacksmith, are you? I’m sorry. I ate your pie.”

“You’re welcome,” returned Joe, “we don’t know what you did before, but you must not starve, poor miserable fellow.

Something clicked in the man’s throat, and he turned his back.

I did not want to lose Joe’s confidence. I was staring drearily at my companion and friend. I was too cowardly to tell Joe the truth. As I was sleepy, Joe took me on his back again and carried me home.

Chapter 6

When I was old enough, I was to be apprenticed to Joe.