"You won't have to do that," he said. "I killed 'im this mornin'."
A deadly, sickening hush came over his listeners, and gradually through it the rythmic strokes of a galloping horse fell upon their ears. Brent turned and saw Jane. In a dry voice he said:
"The hell you did."
For once the adaptable engineer seemed helpless to rise to the situation. It was the Colonel who pulled himself together, saying hurriedly:
"Here's Jane! Go out, Brent, and entertain her! I'll take Dale indoors and see what this means!"
"I haven't time," the mountaineer irritably replied. "I'm readin', and can't stop!"
"I'll bet you a cooky you can stop, sir," the old Colonel snapped. "You come and talk to me! Hurry, Brent!"
Entering the French window to the library he turned nervously to Dale.
"Now, what does this mean?"
"Brent told you," the mountaineer answered. "He told you how the varmint yelled, an' what he said. This mornin' I went 'foh sun an' laid out near his cabin. That's all."