Человек-невидимка / The Invisible Man

“Now you’re here,” said she, “I’d be glad if you looked at the clock. The hour hand only points at six.”

And she led the way to the guest room, knocked and entered.

As she opened the door, she saw her visitor sitting in the armchair before the fire. The only light in the room was from the fire. It was quite dark. But for a second it seemed to her that the man had an enormous mouth wide open, it took the whole of the lower portion of his face. It was the impression of a moment. Then he put up his hand. She opened the door wide so that the room was lighter, and she saw him more clearly, with the muffler held to his face, just as she had seen him hold the napkin before.

“Would you mind, sir, this man looking at the clock, sir?” she said.

“Look at the clock?” he said, speaking through his muffler; and then, “Certainly.”

Mr. Teddy Henfrey said he was “taken aback” when he saw this bandaged person.

“Good afternoon,” said the stranger. “I understand,” he said, turning to Mrs.

“I thought, sir,” said Mrs. Hall, “you’d prefer the clock —”

“Certainly,” said the stranger, “certainly – but as a rule I like to be alone and undisturbed.”

Then he asked Mrs. Hall if she had asked anybody to bring his boxes from Bramblehurst. She told him she had spoken to the postman, and that they would be here tomorrow.

“Can’t it be done earlier?” he said. She answered coldly it couldn’t.

“I’ll explain,” he added, “what I haven’t explained before because I was too cold and tired.

“Indeed, sir,” said Mrs. Hall. She was much impressed.

“And my luggage contains some apparatus. And I’m anxious to get on with my experiments.”

“Of course, sir.”

“I came to Iping,” he went on, “to be alone. I do not want to be disturbed in my work. I had an accident —”

“I thought as much[9 - I thought as much – Я так и думала],” said Mrs. Hall to herself.

“My eyes are sometimes so weak and painful that I have to be in the dark for hours.

“Certainly, sir,” said Mrs. Hall. “And may I ask you —”

“That is all, I think” said the stranger, putting an end to the conversation.

Mr. Henfrey worked with the lamp close to him, which left the rest of the room in shadow. As he was curious by nature, Mr. Henfrey was not in a hurry to finish his work with the idea of having a conversation with the stranger.