"Simon ain't the kind to take things easy," mused Shotgun Shillman.
"He'll fret his head off. About the time Slike is well enough to stand prosecution, Simon Reelfoot will be ready to bust."
But the well-known best-laid plans are more breakable than the equally well-known best-laid eggs.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
WHEN THIEVES FALL OUT
"I tell you, Rafe," said Reelfoot in a panic, "they suspect me—they think I'm mixed up in this murder business."
"Accessory before and after the fact," slipped in the district attorney. A reptile himself, he relished the wrigglings of another reptile. "If they prove it on you, you'll be hanged sure as Dan Slike will hang."
"I ain't the only one they can prove it on," snarled Simon Reelfoot.
"Who have you got in mind?" Rafe Tuckleton said in a colorless voice.