“Silva and Perrira had fixed it to lay the grandson out and collar the chart for themselves, and they’d have done it, only he wasn’t backward with the shooting. Your dad was in the bar that night, and he twigged something from what they let drop before they went to the back parlor to hold their meeting. Then when the shooting began he was first into the room, and collared the chart, which was lying on the floor. He was always quick on the uptake, was your dad. Being a knowledgeable man, he reckoned Cark was the only chap in Havana to help him take the stuff and clear it. He knew the stuff was there by what he’d heard going on in the bar before the three chaps had left it for the back room, but before he could conclude business with Cark he up and died.”
Cark nodded.
“That was so,” said he.
“Well,” said Satan, “we’ve got the whole yarn now, and I’m wishing to be done with the business. I’m pretty near sick of you two guys trailing after me, and I’ll hand you out my belief for what it’s worth. It don’t seem natural to me to find gold in a hooker like that, just for the picking up, and I’d sell any man my chances for a thousand dollars. I’ve no knowledge of what’s there. I’m just talkin’ out of my head. You know what I am, I make my livin’, and I’m content to run small. It’s maybe that that puts me against big ventures. Anyhow, we’ve got to push this thing through, we’ve made the contrac’. I don’t want it written down and signed, seein’ that the law couldn’t help me. I’m only sayin’ that if you play me crooked I’ll split. Got that in your heads?”
The high contracting parties on the other side nodded assent.
“That bein’ settled,” said Satan, “here’s the chart.”
He produced a metal tobacco box and took from it a folded piece of paper, which he laid on the table before Sellers.
The effect was magical.
Carquinez sprang from his chair like a young man, came behind Sellers, and, bending over his shoulder, looked. Ratcliffe, though out of the business, was as excited as the others. Satan alone was calm.
He had been carrying the thing about so long that it had probably lost its freshness of interest.