"What we might have done if we had come to a pinch," said Haines, "is one
thing, and what we did do is another. Barry was started and off before we
had a chance to show teeth, my friend, and you never even caught the flash
of our guns. If he'd waited but he didn't. There's nothing left for us to
do except say good-by."
The little dusty man stroked his moustaches thoughtfully. He had gone out
there hoping against hope that his chance might come--to trick the two into
violence, even to start an arrest for reasons which he knew his posse would
swear to; but it must be borne in mind that Pete Glass was a careful man by
instinct. Taking in probable speed of hand and a thousand other details at
a glance, Pete sensed the danger of these two and felt in his heart of
hearts that he was more than master of either of them, considered alone;
better than Buck Daniels by an almost safe margin of steadiness; better than
Lee Haines by a flickering instant of speed. Had either of them alone faced
him, he would have taken his chance, perhaps, to kill or be killed, for the
long trail and the escape had fanned that spark within him to a cold,
hungry fire; but to attempt a play with both at the same time was death,
and he knew it.
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