oth.

"Look a-here, Opal," he said in a threatening voice of anger, "I ain't
a-goin' to fool with you no longer. Hear me shout? Culver's up to you
as much as me. You stole the 'Laughin' Water' claim. There's hell
a-sizzlin' down the street right now--down to Lawrence's. If you don't
cough up ten thousand bucks pretty pronto----"

"So, Larry--so, you've split on me already," the gambler interrupted,
rising and narrowing his gaze upon the bloated face. "You've peddled
it maybe, and now you come to me----"

"I ain't peddled nuthin'!" Trimmer cut in angrily. "I didn't tell no
one but Barger, and he ain't no friend of Van Buren's. But Lawrence is
caught. Pratt run out the line, and now it's me that stands between
you and trouble, and I want the money to stand."

McCoppet was far less calm than he appeared. How much was already
really known to the town was a matter wholly of conjecture. And
Trimmer's haste to cash in thus and probably vanish excited his gravest
suspicions. He eyed his friend narrowly.

"Larry, we'll wait and see how much you've maybe leaked."

"No we won't wait fer nuthin'!--not fer nuthin', understand?" corrected
Trimmer aggressively. "I ain't a-trustin' you, Opal, no more! You
done me up at every turn, and now, by God! you're goin' to come to
terms!" He pulled an ugly, rusty gun, and thumped with its muzzle on
the table. "You'll never leave this room alive if I don't git the
money. Ring fer it, Opal, ring the bell, and order it in with the
drinks!"

McCoppet would have temporized. It was not so much the money now as
the state of affairs in the street. How much was known?--and what was
being done? These were the questions in his mind.

"Don't get excited, friend," he said. "If things are out, and you and
I are caught with the aces in our sleeves, we may have to fight back to
back." He was edging around to draw his pistol unobserved,

But Trimmer was alert. "Stand still, there, Opal, I've got the drop,"
he said. "I'm lookin' out fer number one, this morning, understand?
You ring the----"

A sudden, loud knock at the door broke in upon his speech, and both men
started in alarm.

"Opal! Opal!" cried a muffled voice in accents of warning just outside
the door, "Christler's on your trail! Come out! Come out and--huh!
Too late! You'll have to get out the window!"

The roar and excitement of the coming crowd, aroused to a wild
indignation, broke even to the den. An army o