Winnie watched the two men with something like affection as they walked down the street, one short and heavy, the other tall and thin. The cloth of their coats was the same and their hats were round and black. 'They could be father and son,' she said to herself happily.
In the days that followed, Verloc took Stevie out more and more often, but the boy had started to talk to himself and seemed angry. Winnie was afraid that he was listening to her husband's friends too much. Verloc said that he might calm down if he went to stay with Michaelis in the country. Winnie soon agreed. After all, Michaelis was always so kind to Stevie, not like some of the others, and he seemed to like the boy.