"Good-bye, Frenchy."
Dave ripped out a curse and shifted slightly. The barrel sprang round to him, and he froze into stillness.
"Don't do that again, Davy," warned Mills.
"You'll catch it hot for this," snarled one of them.
"Very like," replied the trader.
He counted a liberal five minutes by guess. He dared not look away from his men. At last he spoke.
"It was up to me, boys," he said with a sigh. "I couldn't do no less. If it 'ad been a man 'e shot I'd ha' kept you here all day. But I've done enough, I reckon, seein' it was a woman."
He dropped the revolver to the ground.
"Now!" he said.
They sat round and stared at him. For full a minute no one spoke. Mills gave them back their eyes gloomily, leaning with folded arms against the wall. Then Dave drew a long breath, a very sigh.