Then he wiped his eyes again with the handkerchief, and put it back in his pocket.
At the third deal somebody discovered that the pack was shy—a card was missing. Investigation showed that it was the ace of hearts.
A search on the floor failed to discover the ace.
The irritation caused by this incident was subdued.
"I'll slip over to the hotel and get another pack,"
Seth Long suggested, gathering up the cards and putting them in his pocket.
From the time Carney had discovered the erratic curve to the doves' wings he had been wanting to ask, "Who owns these cards?" but had realized that it would have led to other things. Now the query had answered itself—they were Seth's, evidently.
This decided Carney, and he said, "I'm tired—I've had a long ride to-day."
He stacked up his chips and added: "I'm shy a hundred."
He slid five twenty-dollar gold pieces on to the table, and stood up, yawning.