“What?” Kent’s mouth twitched. He shook his fist in Gallup’s face. “How’d he know that?” he cried.
“That scares you, does it? Let him prove what he——” Gallup stopped short, his eyes on the door to the adjoining room. He had seen it move! He knew that he had closed it when Kent came in. Pushing his visitor out of the way, Aaron made a leap for the door and threw it open. Tobias was caught flat-footed.
Gallup grabbed the man by his coat and dragged him into the room. “Eavesdroppin’, eh?” Aaron screamed. “I’ll teach you to spy on me. You’re through—fired! You ain’t got a cent but what you got from me. You pussyfootin’ swine, what were you hopin’ to hear! Take _that_!”
Tobias Gale fairly bristled as he got up from the floor. So wrathful was he that his little body trembled from head to foot. For years he had suppressed his emotions, bridled his desires, made a machine of himself. Gallup marveled as he gazed at him now.
“Let us be honest for once, Aaron Gallup,” Tobias said with fine impudence. “When the pot calls the kettle black it’s time to tell the truth. What I’ve got is mine. I earned it doing your dirty bidding.
“You’ll not kick me out. I’ve protected myself. Indeed I have. You’ll find that out when you try to call in some of your loans. Humph! A swine am I, eh? You are the swine, Aaron Gallup.
“I know why you wanted Johnny Dice put out of the way, and I know that Crosbie Traynor didn’t kill himself. You know it, too! You’ll crawl to me before I’ve finished. You just try to kick me out, to cheat me—and I’ll tell what’s what.
“You’ve kicked and beat me for years. You thought I didn’t mind. Well, I’ve made it my business to find out about you. You start your little tricks, and Molly Kent will know, and Johnny Dice will know. I’ll talk you so deep into jail that the Carson Penitentiary will crumble to ruins before they let you out.”
“Get out of my way!” he warned Gallup. “I’m leaving this house now forever. When you’ve got something to say to me you can come to the hotel and find me.”
And the slave marched out, the king at last!
Kent and Gallup sat and stared at each other for countless minutes. Crushed, dumfounded, Kent reached for his hat finally and without a word stumbled down the stairs to get into his rig and start for home.