"But if you ask me," Lanyard frankly laughed—"too much!"
"All right," Morphew agreed in gloomy gratification: "That puts it up to you which you want to do now—go up the River to do a nice long stretch or stick on in Town here and take life easy."
"Not so long ago it was the Lone Wolf's boast that he never found it necessary to take life easily or otherwise . . . as you were good enough to remind me, monsieur, the last time we had the pleasure of conversing together."
DETECTIVE CRANE OBEYING THE INSTINCT OF PROFESSION, AT THE SAME TIME ADMIRES THE FASCINATING CROOK, MICHAEL LANYARD.
"Not the last time by a long sight," Morphew bluntly contradicted; "but I know when you mean."
"Today one begins to wonder if that boast was good only because the Lone Wolf had never been given proper provocation."
Morphew took time to digest this. "You talk as crooked as you work," he concluded; "but the way I take it, that's a threat."