"Oh, hell!" said Leighton. Heretofore, Luke had always appeared to be on his side, so that the District-Attorney did not know the meaning of his assistant’s outward calm. "Those letters aren’t legal evidence enough." "I think they are, Leighton. Besides, I think there are times when moral evidence goes ahead of legal evidence, and ought to—and I think this is one of those times." "Well," said Leighton, "I don’t. So that ends it." "Of course," Luke calmly pursued, "if you could make these fellows re-lay the road, it might be worth while to do no more than scare them, at least if you don’t consider the political ethics and consider only the immediate protection of life." "I told you I’d take care of the regulation of the road as soon as I was re-elected." "Ye-es. But could you?" "Certainly I could." "I should say that once they’d got their letters back, _you’d_ be in _their_ power." Leighton got to his feet. He was angry. He faced Luke, who did not shift his lazy pose. "Look here," he said, "we’ve been friends, and you’ve done good work for me, especially this afternoon——" "Thanks," said Luke. "But it looks as if the time had come when you’d better understand who’s the head of this office." "You are," Luke assured his chief; and then added: "I’m glad to say." "Well, then, Huber, I’ve got to tell you that if you don’t act accordingly, we must part company." Luke raised his listless eyes. "You’ve quite made up your mind to do this thing, Leighton?" "Let you go? Not if you’ll only be reasonable." "I mean this thing about the letters." "Yes." "You’re going to make use of these fellows’ money-power in politics?" "It’s already in politics. It always has been." "But you are going to try to use it for yourself?" "Yes, I am. It’s my own business." "Is it? That money is blood-money, Leighton." "You’re a fool!" "I know I am. But it’s you that I’m worried about. You’re quite determined?" "_Absolutely._" Luke shrugged his shoulders. He began to move slowly toward the door. "Here!" said Leighton sharply. "Where’re you going?" Luke scarcely looked at him. "I’m going to write my resignation." Leighton was startled, but he tried not to show it. "Very well," he said, "write it. But don’t be too fast: you may hand over those letters first." "Letters?" Luke seemed never to have heard the word before. "What letters?" "Why do you try so hard to be an ass, Huber?" The District-Attorney extended his hand for the papers that he had given Luke during the interview with Rollins. "Drop all this resignation rot—_My_ letters, of course." Luke’s face met Leighton’s fairly. "The only letters I have about me," he said with quiet distinctness, "are two that are my property. I bought them with the last two thousand five hundred dollars of my own money." As the words came home to him, Leighton’s face grew purple. His brows met in a knot. At his temples two veins pulsed visibly.