Not far from the door he tapped the stranger on the shoulder. The tall man faced about with surprising swiftness.
“What do you want?” he snapped.
“I know all about you,” said my companion, evenly.
The collapse was sudden; the tall man’s jaw dropped perceptibly.
“Come farther away and I’ll listen to you,” he said, with a furtive glance at the pool-room doors.
Round a quiet corner my companion stated his business, and the wire-tapper brought out his roll of bills and fingered them feverishly.
“This is blackmail,” he whined; “but how much do you want?”
“It’s not blackmail, and I want none of your money,” protested my companion, indignantly. “All you have to do is to take my money and place it on the right horse. Here are ten dollars for a start. I shall watch you go in and come out of the pool-room from this corner.”
The wire-tapper had hardly left us when a little boy of thirteen or fourteen ran up to him with a note; then he disappeared through the swinging doors.
Presently the wire-tapper came out and, without a word, counted thirty dollar bills into the other’s hand.