“It's you, is it?” repeated Captain Cy. Then, turning to Miss Phoebe, he asked: “Did he hurt you?”
“No! Not yet. But he frightened me dreadfully. Who is he? Do you know him?”
Her persecutor answered the question.
“You bet your life he knows me!” he snarled. “He knows me mighty well! Pard, you keep your nose out of this, d'you see! You mind your own business. I wan't goin' to hurt her any.”
The captain paid no attention to him.
“Yup, I know him,” he said grimly. Then he added, pointing toward the lighted window of the house ahead: “You—Smith, you go in there and stay there! Trot! Don't make me speak twice.”
But Mr. Smith was too far gone with anger and the “spirits” raised by Tad Simpson to heed the menace in the words.
“Smith, hey?” he sneered. “Oh, yes, SMITH! Well, Smith ain't goin', d'you see! He's goin' to do what he pleases. I reckon I'm on top of the roost here! I know what's what! You can't talk to me. I've got rights, I have, and—”
“Blast your rights!”
“What? WHAT? Blast my rights, hey? Oh, yes! Think because you've got money you can cheat me out of 'em, do you? Well, you can't! And how about the other part of those rights? S'pose I walk right into that house and—”