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Show 173 "Aren't you the great wonder!" she said, stepping back to admire Karl. The overcoat was charcoal gray, with a black velvet collar. Before Karl buttoned it, he read the label inside -- 'The House of Kuppenheimer, Chicago.' He ran his hands over his chest, feeling the soft strength of finer wool than he'd ever before touched. Wabash Sam's eyes brightened at the thought of the price he could get for the overcoat from the second-hand dealer. "Here, let me put the hat on you," the woman said. "Glory be, that fits, too! You look like a proper nob. God bless you, lad, and I'm prayin* the coat helps your lungs improve. You remind me of my own dear baby brother back home in County Cork." Karl reached for her hand and held it tightly. "God bless you, too," he said. "You're a kind woman." "Go along wich yez," she answered shyly, her face even redder than it had been when they entered. Karl had to drop her hand then and hurry through the door, because he felt like such a heel for deceiving her. Wabash Sam gloated all the way down the drive, but silently. When they reached the bush where Karl had hidden his own cap and coat, far beyond hearing of anyone in the house, Sam let out a whoop. "Do you know how much I can get for that fancy overcoat?" he asked, smacking Karl on the back. "Twenty simoleons, at least! That was some act you put on back there. 'You're such a kind woman,'" Sam mimicked. "Shut your face," Karl growled. |