They blinked hard, but they did not protest.
“I don’t know how much of a ‘hot rock’ he dropped into your hat, but I’m prepared to drop in a bigger and a hotter one.”
I had never heard that expression about a “hot rock” before, and I was obliged to listen a little while longer in order to understand that Captain Holstrom was talking thus bluntly about a bribe.
“In one case you’re doing business with a crook—a thief. He’ll turn around and do you when he has used you. In this case you are dealing with a man who has a name along the water-front, who owns this steamer, and who is here to make a dollar for himself and for you. You are men with brains and you can size up chaps pretty well. I’ll bet you didn’t like the looks of that whelp with his cat’s eyes and his mustache cocked up—come, now!”
They blinked harder.
The captain leaned to me and whispered in my ear: “Run and tell Kama to give you every gold piece she has got in her pocket. Dig over your own pockets. Tell the Joneses to dig. Bring it here. I’ve got to keep ’em on the run with conversation.”
I returned with my collection, and the captain added the contents of his own pocket, banging the coins on the transom. Then he swept the money into a little sack and drove the sack down into the trousers pocket of one of the officers.
“That’s only posting a little forfeit that we’ll do as we agree,” cried Captain Holstrom, heartily. “We are here where you can watch us, gents. But you can’t watch a fly-by-night like that coyote who has been lying to you about us. Keep your eyes out—stand by us—and you’ll get a ‘hot rock’ in your hat that you’ll need both hands to hold up. We’ll see the other man’s stake and then raise him out of the game—and if we don’t, then come and seize the steamer.”
He followed the men to the rail, shook hands with them half a dozen times, and they returned most urbane grins when they rowed away.
As soon as they were out of ear-shot the captain cursed them in horrible fashion and shook his clenched fist at them under pretense of waving farewells.