“You only made them laugh to see how quickly your head disappeared when they fired.”
“How do you know?” he said sharply.
“Because that’s exactly what they would do,” I replied.
Denham frowned, and turned to Joeboy.
“Here,” he said, “put up that big stone on the edge there.”
The black obeyed, and then Denham pointed to another.
“Put that one beside it, and leave just room between them for me to peer out. I want to see whether it’s possible to do as you did, Val, and bring out a wagon of cartridge-boxes.”
Joeboy raised first one and then another great stone upon the edge as he was told, and Denham stepped up directly to look between them, but bobbed his head and stepped down again directly, for spat, spat, spat, three rifle-bullets struck the stones and fell rattling down.
Denham looked sharply towards me, frowning angrily; but I met his eyes without shrinking.
“I wish I wasn’t so nervous,” he said, by way of apology. “It’s from being weak, I suppose.”