"If I do, that's my business. The doe is mine."
"You are wrong," answered Tad. "The doe is mine. You know it is."
"Well, for the sake of the argument, what are you going to do about it?"
"Take the deer back with me," answered Butler evenly.
"And what do you think I'll be doing while you-all are taking my doe away?"
"I don't care what you do. I propose to do what I please with my own property."
"Look here, kid. I've just been leadin' you along by the nose. Now, I'm going to talk straight."
"That's what I want you to do. But I doubt if you can talk straight—I doubt if you can tell the truth. A fellow who will steal a deer will not hesitate to lie," answered Butler, gazing defiantly at the horseman. The man flushed under his tan, flushed clear up under his hat.
"Layin' all that talk aside, how you going to prove that that doe is your property?"
"How are you going to prove that it isn't?" retorted the Pony Rider Boy.