Raisins and almonds - Poisoned Pen Press (UK)

Raisins and Almonds 1
‘Yossi,’ said Phryne, ‘you really wanted your formula back,
didn’t you?’
Yossi hung his head. ‘I didn’t mean to hurt you,’ he muttered
to Mrs. Katz. ‘I didn’t know that he’d left you tied up. When I
found out I went back, but Miss Williams was already there.’
‘You broke my plate,’ said Mrs. Katz sadly. ‘And I can’t get no
other. If you had asked me, I would have told you that I didn’t
have your paper.’
‘What would the rabbi say about this situation?’ asked Phryne.
‘He would say that Yossi should serve Mrs. Katz in some way,
to repair as far as possible the damage he has caused, the fear
and the injury,’ said David Kaplan.
‘Of course, we could just lock him up,’ said Robinson.
Phryne asked. ‘Hush, Jack, you are a spoil sport! I’ll find your
major offender for you; can’t you let a few little fish through the
net? Yossi has a great future as a chemist. He and Mr. Abrahams
are going into business and I expect them to be very successful.’
‘Well, since there was no official complaint made…’ temporized
the Detective Inspector, and allowed Phryne to sit him
down again. She perched on the arm of the chair.
‘I could make you a pair of shoes,’ said Yossi suddenly. He
knelt down and took up one of Mrs. Katz’s feet. ‘I’m a good
shoemaker. These look tight and they hurt, nu?’
‘I can’t tell you how much,’ said Mrs. Katz. ‘All day on my
feet, cooking, washing. Agony,’ she declared. ‘And good shoes
so expensive.’
‘I can make you a pair, you won’t know you’re wearing shoes,’
said Yossi, and grinned. ‘Like air on the feet.’
Mrs. Katz clipped him lightly across the ear and said, ‘See
that they are.’
‘Very nice,’ approved Phryne. ‘Will you make me shoes as
well, or wasn’t it you who climbed into my room and handled
all my underwear?’
‘Me,’ said Yossi. ‘A pair of shoes, you’ll want to stand all day
to feel how nice they are.’