George looked up the clock. It was a quarter past six. The door from the street opened. A street-car motorman came in

“Hello, George,” he said. “Can I get supper?”

“Sam’s gone out,” George said. “He’ll be back in about half an hour.”

“I’d better go up the street,” the motorman said. George looked at the clock. It was twenty minutes past six.

“That was nice, bright boy,” Max said. “You’re a regular little gentleman.”

“He knew I’d blow his head off,” Al said from the kitchen.

“No,” said Max. “It ain’t that. Bright boy is nice. He’s a nice boy. I like him.”

depend [dı`pend] regular [`regjul∂]

At six-fifty-five (в шесть /часов/ пятьдесят пять) George said: “He’s not coming (он не придет).”

Two other people had been in the lunch-room (двое других людей побывали в закусочной). Once (один раз) George had gone out to the kitchen and made a ham-and-egg sandwich “to go” (на вынос) that a man wanted to take with him (который человек хотел взять с собой). Inside the kitchen he saw Al (внутри кухни он увидел Эла), his derby hat tipped back (его котелок /был/ сдвинут назад; to tip – наклонять/ся/; запрокидываться), sitting on a stool beside the wicket (сидящим на табурете возле окошечка) with the muzzle (с дулом; muzzle – морда; дуло) of of a sawed-off shotgun (отпиленного ружья = обреза) resting (лежащим, покоящимся) on the ledge (на планке, краю /окошечка/). Nick and the cook were back in the corner (в углу), a towel tied in each of their mouths (полотенце, завязанное = заткнутое в каждом из их ртов = во рту у каждого). George had cooked the sandwich, wrapped it up in oiled paper (завернул его в пергаментную бумагу; oil – растительное или минеральное масло; oiled – пропитанный маслом, промасленный), put it in a bag (положил его в пакет), brought it in (вынес из кухни, занес в комнату), and the man had paid for it (заплатил за него) and gone out.

“Bright boy can do everything (все умеет: «может делать все»),” Max said. “He can cook and everything. You’d make some girl a nice wife (ты бы сделал какую-нибудь девушку славной женой = повезло твоей будущей жене), bright boy.”

“Yes?” George said. “Your friend (ваш друг), Ole Andreson, isn’t going to come (не придет).”

“We’ll give him ten minutes (мы дадим ему десять минут),” Max said.

Max watched the mirror and the clock. The hands of the clock marked seven o’clock (стрелки часов показали семь), and then five minutes past seven (а затем пять минут после семи = пять минут восьмого).

At six-fifty-five George said: “He’s not coming.”

Two other people had been in the lunch-room. Once George had gone out to the kitchen and made a ham-and-egg sandwich “to go” that a man wanted to take with him. Inside the kitchen he saw Al, his derby hat tipped back, sitting on a stool beside the wicket with the muzzle of of a sawed-off shotgun resting on the ledge. Nick and the cook were back in the corner, a towel tied in each of their mouths. George had cooked the sandwich, wrapped it up in oiled paper, put it in a bag, brought it in, and the man had paid for it and gone out.

“Bright boy can do everything,” Max said. “He can cook and everything. You’d make some girl a nice wife, bright boy.”

“Yes?” George said. “Your friend, Ole Andreson, isn’t going to come.”

“We’ll give him ten minutes,” Max said.