The Killer

“Yes,” said the antiquarian, “our profits grow thanks to all sorts of circumstances. Some customers are ignorant—they don’t understand the value of things, and then we profit from their ignorance, meaning we charge them a certain dividend for our superior knowledge. Others are of questionable honesty”—and the antiquarian lifted the candle so that its light fell directly on the face of his visitor—“and in such cases we too benefit from our higher virtue,” he added…“