I had no intention of pushing these men too far. "I'm from--" He took two quick steps down to the yard. He was beside me so fast I didn't have time to withdraw. "Hell. Or at least that's what these folks are gonna believe before I'm through with them." On the porch, Ray-Ban laughed in one big hoot. He eased to the top of the steps. I was very sorry I'd come here. "You know anything about training dogs?" Spider asked. "I didn't come here to discuss dog training. I--" He cut me off. "You can treat an animal nice and sweet, and maybe half the time they'll do what you say. But you put fear into them, you make them understand they don't do what you say and they're gonna suffer, then they'll mind. Not half the time. Not two-thirds of the time. But ever' time you open your mouth. That's the way you make animals fall into line." "You're wrong about that. And we're not dealing with animals." His inference was too clear to ignore.
