ll enjoy hearing that," Val
commented.

"It's perfectly legal," bleated the lawyer. "We possess a court order to
view the place with the purpose of appraising it for sale." He drew a
stiff paper from the inside pocket of his coat and waved it toward the
boy.

"Bunk! I don't know much about the law but I do know that you could have
obtained nothing of the kind without our being notified. And just which
one of you has been selected to do the appraising?"

"Him," answered Red laconically and jerked his thumb at the Boss.

"So," Jeems stared at him, "since yo' couldn't git what yo' want by
thievin' at night, yo're goin' to try and git it by day."

"But what are you really after? I'm curious to know. You certainly don't
want a sugar plantation which hasn't been paying its way since the Civil
War. That just isn't reasonable. And you ought to know that we can't
afford to buy you off. We must be living over a gold-mine that we
haven't discovered. Come on, tell us where it is," Val prodded.

"Cut the cackle," advised Red, "an' le's git down to it."

"I would advise you to get back in your car and drive out." Val wondered
if his face looked as stiff as it felt. "This visit isn't going to get
you anywhere."

"We ain't goin' any place, kid," remarked the rival. "You don't seem to
understand. We're stayin' right here. I got rights and the judge has
recognized them. I'm top guy here now."

"Yeah. Yuh ain't so smart as yuh think yuh are," contributed Red,
scowling at Val. "We ain't gonna leave."

It wasn't Red's speech, however, that straightened the boy's back and
made Jeems shift his position an inch or two. There was another car
coming up the drive. And since their enemies were all gathered before
them, they could only be receiving friends, or at the worst neutrals.

But the car which came from between the live-oaks to park behind the
first contained only two passengers. LeFleur and Creighton got out,
stopped in surprise to view the party on the terrace, and then came up,
shoving by Red.

"Quite a party," Val observed. "But how did you manage to arrive so
opportunely?"

"We have made a discovery," panted the Creole lawyer; "a very important
discovery. What are these men doing here?"

"We got a court order to view this house for sale." The rival was
truculent. "An' it's all legal. The mouthpiece says so," he indicated
his counselor.

"Perhaps," Creighton's cool tones cut through, "you had better introduce
us." Th