"What do yuh want us to do about it?" It was Chip who asked the question, and his tone was quite calm and impersonal.
Andy looked at him reproachfully. "Do? What is there to do, except go down there and see? If we can find that out, we can put the sheriff wise and let him do the rest. It sure does seem kinda tough, if a man can do a murder and robbery and get off with it, just because nobody cares enough about it to head him off."
The Happy Family stirred uneasily. Of course, it was all just a josh of Andy's—but he was such a convincing liar! Almost they felt guilty of criminal negligence that they did not at once saddle up and give chase to the murderer, who had tried to kill Andy for following him, and who was headed for Chinook after unnecessarily proclaiming himself bound for Dry Lake.
"Do you want the whole outfit to turn out?" asked Chip calmly at last.
"No-o—"
"Say, is it anywheres near that prehistoric castle you found once?" Ping asked maliciously, unbelief getting strong hold of him again.
Andy turned toward him, scowling. "No, Angel-child, it ain't," he snapped. "And you fellows can back up and snort all yuh darn please, and make idiots of yourselves. But yuh can't do any business making me out a hot-air peddler on this deal. I stand pat, just where I stood at first, and it'll take a lot uh cackling to make me back down. That old devil did lie about Dan, and he did take a shot at me—"
"He took yuh for a horse-thief, most likely," explained Jack Bates.
"He didn't need no field glass to see you was a suspicious character, by golly," chortled Slim.
"He thought yuh was after what little your friend Dan had overlooked, chances is," added Cal Emmett.