“You ought to have been here,” observed Mr. Jones.
“Did the beast give any signs of wanting to prance?” asked Ricardo quickly, with absolutely genuine anxiety. “It wouldn't do, sir. You must play him easy for at least a couple of days, sir. I have a plan. I have a notion that I can find out a lot in a couple of days.”
“You have? In what way?”
“Why, by watching,” Ricardo answered slowly.
Mr. Jones grunted.
“Nothing new, that. Watch, eh? Why not pray a little, too?”
“Ha, ha, ha! That's a good one,” burst out the secretary, fixing Mr. Jones with mirthless eyes.
The latter dropped the subject indolently.
“Oh, you may be certain of at least two days,” he said.
Ricardo recovered himself. His eyes gleamed voluptuously.