They walked up Regent Street, as Mrs Herring said she wanted to buy a thimble.
But when they reached Redfern Street, Mrs Herring put her hand suddenly to her breast and cried "Oh, dearie, if you could feel how my heart is beating! I really feel as if I am going to faint.

I've suffered for years with my heart, and the doctor told me always to take a drop of something soothing, when I had an attack." They were opposite the "Angel", no longer sinister and forbidding in the broad daylight.

The enormous lamps hung white and opaque; the huge mirrors reflected the cheerful light of the afternoon sun.

The establishment seemed harmless and respectable, like the grocer's or baker's.

But from the swinging doors came a strong odour of alcohol, enveloping the two women in a vinous caress that stirred hidden desires like a strong perfume.
"Do you think we could slip in here without being seen ?" said the housekeeper.
"If ye're so bad as all that, we can," replied Ada.
Mrs Herring turned and slipped in at the side door with the dexterity of customers entering a pawnshop, and Ada followed, slightly bewildered.