Page:Caroline Lockhart--The full of the Moon.djvu/221

 saw the hostility in Spiser's face and manner. He was not kept long in doubt as to its cause.

"You're gettin' damn' conscientious, ain't you?" he sneered.

Ben flushed.

"I ain't got no wings sproutin', but I don't aim to rustle from my friends."

"It seems to me you're a lookin' out a whole lot sharper for your friends' interests than you are for mine. And to be candid, Evans"—he eyed Ben insolently—"I think you're too much of a lady's man to be doin' much good for the L.X. outfit.

"And, as a matter of fact, I've come to the conclusion that you'd better get your time, take your blankets, and ride on. Kansas Ed is foreman of this outfit from now on."

Ben stood dazed with the unexpectedness of it, then with a show of spirit:

"All right, I'll go. The L.X. isn't the only cattle outfit in the State."

"The only one in this part of it that you'll be allowed to work for."

"We'll see about that." But the retort was bravado only, for Ben knew as well as Spiser the latter's power.