“I guess that Larry will come to time now,” remarked Noddy. “I’ll look for a personal from him in the papers to-morrow, saying he’s ready to sign the deed. I’m getting tired of keeping the paper around. It’s a dangerous document to be found on me.” “I hope you have it in a safe place,” remarked one of the men, who had not yet spoken save to greet Noddy. “The safest place in the world,” replied Noddy. He pointed to a mantelpiece, on which were a number of objects. One was what seemed to be a folded newspaper stuck behind a vase, and half showing. “There it is,” he said, indicating the newspaper. “I don’t call that very secure,” remarked Perkins. “It is, because it’s so simple,” argued Noddy. “If I had it in a safe or a strong-box, that would be the first place they would look for it if they broke in. But they’d never think of unfolding that piece of newspaper, because it’s so common. They’d say to themselves that I’d never be so foolish as to leave it in plain sight that way, and so they’d pass over it.” “That’s a good idea,” admitted Dick Randall, the man who had asked about the deed. “Well, what’s the next thing on the programme?” asked Noddy, after the men had lighted cigars which he produced. “We’ll wait a few days until we hear from Larry, I think,” spoke Perkins. “But if he don’t answer, and agree to do as we want?” “Well, then, we’ll have to drop him a gentle hint that something is liable to happen to the kid here.” “But you wouldn’t hurt the little fellow!” exclaimed Noddy. “I wouldn’t stand for that,” he went on. “I’m bad enough and desperate enough, as all of you know, but if there’s going to be any game that includes hurting a little chap, you can not only cut me out of it, but I’ll not stand for it, and I’ll——” and the blue-handed man seemed to be very much in earnest. “Getting chicken-hearted?” sneered Perkins. “Well, you can call it what you like,” went on Noddy, looking at his stained hands, “but I’m not as low as that yet. I want this deal to go through as much as any of you fellows, but I’ll not step over a certain line, and the sooner you know it the better.” “You don’t mean to say you’ll peach on us?” asked Randall. “Not unless I have to,” answered Noddy, calmly. “It depends on how far you go.” “Noddy’s right,” remarked Randall, with a wink at the other two. “I’m opposed to hurting the child. We’ll only use him for scaring Larry and his mother into doing what we want. After all, we’re giving the young cub and the widow a fair price for this land. We’re taking a lot of risks, and it’s only fair we should be paid for ’em. It isn’t as if we were trying to get the land for nothing.” “Oh, I’m with you in anything reasonable,” spoke the blue-handed man. “Only, don’t hurt the little kid. That’s my last word. I used to have a little boy once—before I went to the bad,” and he turned his head away.