Walz, disregarding the order, tried to pull himself to a sitting position. The effort brought new pain.
“That fool has done for me,” he moaned. “I’ll never get back to Elks Creek.”
“After the way you left Warner and me trapped in the mine, you don’t deserve any help,” Jack said. “We ought to leave you here to suffer.”
His words were not meant to be serious. Walz nevertheless considered them so.
“Don’t leave me here,” he begged. “I can’t walk a step. I’d never get back to Elks Creek alive. You must help me!”
“And if we do?”
“I’ll give you a share of the gold,” Walz whispered. “I swear it. I did wrong to take the map.”
“What about the way you left us in the mine?”
“I meant to send help to you as soon as I reached Elks Creek,” Walz mumbled.
Jack had his own opinion on this matter, but he let it pass.