The tunnel, Toast noted, was much less well-made than the rest of the shaft. If it weren’t for his heavily honed sense of balance and the bright lights from the motorcycle behind him, he’d have probably been stumbling all over the place. Wait, bright lights? Did everyone decide to follow him? Well that’s awfully flattering, but the lights kinda kill any pretense of stealth--
The singing stopped and the workers started muttering to themselves. It seemed they noticed the the headlights heading down the tunnel, and they didn’t seem too happy about their presence. So much for sitting back and observing.
Oh well, sometimes things don’t go according to plan. The best performers know how to improvise. When the apparent leader calls out, Toast casually walks forward with his hands on his head and a big smile on his face. ”Ya know, for someone who has their ‘permits an’ everything’, you guys are awfully jumpy,” he says with a bit of a chuckle, hoping to diffuse some of the tension with a bit of humor. He remembered Sam saying something about potential “freeholders” and that they could possibly be dangerous, so avoiding a fight’s probably the best bet.
”As for me, I was just passing through when I overheard y’all’s singing. You know, if this, uh, “get-rich-quick scheme” doesn’t pan out, y’all would make a great barber shop quartet!” he joked, hinting that he wasn’t buying the miners’ “perfectly legitimate business”. ”In any case, since y’all are law-abiding citizens and all, do you think y’all could help me out with something?”