He swaggered back to the bar, leaving Hendricks and Leach at the table.
“You sure picked a good man,” observed Hendricks.
“Did I?” Leach smiled crookedly. “I guess that Santel found out what he came here to find. It’s no fault of his if we don’t agree with him.”
“It’s a free country, Leach, and—here comes Brick now.”
Brick was coming into the place, with Silent behind him. Santel was at the bar, taking a drink, but he turned and looked at Brick, who stopped short and faced Santel.
Hendricks started to get up from the table, but Leach grasped him by the arm, drawing him back. Santel was just drunk enough to forget caution, and his lips drew up in a wolfish grin.
“Well,” he said, as his voice carried to all parts of the room, “here’s Sun Dog County’s little tin god.”
The bartender scuttled to the upper end of the bar, out of line with the two men, and those at a card-table behind Brick immediately lost all interest in their play and moved quickly. Brick was grinning and it irritated Santel.
“You, I’m talkin’ to!” snarled Santel.
“To me?” Brick laughed. “Well, that’s nice of yuh, Santel. I sure wondered who yuh meant, and I’m glad that Sun Dog likes me so well.”