He was full of drink already, but not drunk, and my own
head was as light as air. I was ready for anything. He unlocked a drawer
and took a brace of old revolvers from the case in which I put them away
again. I locked up the drawer afterwards, and put his keys back in his
pocket, before losing my head and doing all the rest that the police saw
through at a glance. Sit still, Langholm! I am getting the cart before
the horse. I was not so guilty as you think. They may hang me if they
like, but it was as much his act as mine.
"He stood with his back to me, fiddling with the revolvers for a good
five minutes, during which time I heard him tear his handkerchief in
two, and wondered what in the world he was going to do next. What he did
was to turn round and go on fiddling with the pistols behind his back.
Then he held out one in each hand by the barrel, telling me to take my
choice, that he didn't know which was which himself, but only one of
them was loaded. And he had lapped the two halves of his handkerchief
round the chambers of each in such a way that neither of us could tell
when we were going to fire.
"Then he tossed for first shot, and made me call, and I won.
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