1636 Les Miserables
ing of the wall, got astride of it, let themselves slip, one after
the other, along the rope, upon a little roof which touches
the bath-house, pulled their rope after them, jumped down
into the courtyard of the bath-house, traversed it, pushed
open the porter’s wicket, beside which hung his rope, pulled
this, opened the porte-cochere, and found themselves in the
street.
Three-quarters of an hour had not elapsed since they had
risen in bed in the dark, nail in hand, and their project in
their heads.
A few moments later they had joined Babet and Mont-
parnasse, who were prowling about the neighborhood.
They had broken their rope in pulling it after them, and
a bit of it remained attached to the chimney on the roof.
They had sustained no other damage, however, than that of
scratching nearly all the skin off their hands.
That night, Thenardier was warned, without any one be-
ing able to explain how, and was not asleep.
Towards one o’clock in the morning, the night being
very dark, he saw two shadows pass along the roof, in the
rain and squalls, in front of the dormer-window which was
opposite his cage. One halted at the window, long enough to
dart in a glance. This was Brujon.
Thenardier recognized him, and understood. This was
enough.
Thenardier, rated as a burglar, and detained as a measure
of precaution under the charge of organizing a nocturnal
ambush, with armed force, was kept in sight. The sentry,
who was relieved every two hours, marched up and down