"Maxwell Grant - The Shadow - 024 - Six Men of Evil" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grant Maxwell)

had your alibis.

"Maybe they've got you listed as men who scrambled across the border into Mexico - maybe they
haven't. If worst came to worst, you could say that bandits had dragged you there. But that's all ended
now, because you're changed men - and you're all in the same boat.

"You've been little crooks - little enough to get away with it. You enlisted in the army so as to hide, like I
did. You didn't like it, and when you found others of your kind, you deserted, like I did.

"I knew where there was something worthwhile getting, at Zeltapec. We went after it; we flopped; and
now, with a few thousand dollars worth of gold apiece, you want to go back to where you left off.

"I want to go back, too, but not the same man as I went away. So I'm glad of what happened to me at
Zeltapec - now that it's all over. I've got my brains; I know the ropes; and I'm free from recognition.
When I hit New York, I'll be ready for business, and there's nobody going to know me. That's why I'm
glad I'm different!"

Buzzed responses showed that the others understood their leader's meaning. Then, in mollified tones, one
of the listeners spoke, raising an objection in a cautious manner.

"That's right, Charley," said the man. "It's good for you. You're fixed right. But what about the rest of us -
how does it help us?"

Mumbles of agreement showed that the rest shared the opinion of the speaker. It was the final challenge
to the one who dominated.

CHARLEY was ready for it.

"How does it help you?" he asked. "It helps you great! I know you fellows like a book. Small-towners,
all of you. You went away from home; you got in dutch; you tried to grab a big haul so you could go
back and make a grand splurge in the little burgs you came from.

"You forget that you may be in wrong there. Those alibis might not hold up. Uncle Sam is none too easy
on deserters. You're not the first who skipped across the border!

"You all figured on going back home; the more you talked about it, the more you liked it. I let the idea
ride until later; then those Aztecs at Zeltapec changed the whole works. Here you are - crying about the
tough luck that's hit you - and all the while, you're passing up the opportunity that's worth a million each!"

Excited gasps came from the riders. They caught the ring of the leader's words. They crowded close in
breathless silence, knowing that some stupendous plan was coming.

"Spring it, Charley," came an eager voice. "Give us the lay. We're with you. What'll we do - stick
together?"

"We will go our own ways," declared the leader, in a low, firm tone. "Go as we had planned - each man
to the place of his choice. But we shall go as men unknown. Forget your old names, and adopt new
ones. You will be welcome, for each of you will have money. Forget crime; for it will be your duties to
create confidence in the communities where you belong.