A Double-Dyed Deceiver (Henry)

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O. Henry

A Double-Dyed Deceiver

Summary of the Short Story
from the Collection «Roads of Destiny»

Microsummary: A young outlaw, known as the Llano Kid, fled to South America after a deadly altercation and assumed the identity of a wealthy family's long-lost son, ultimately choosing to maintain the deception to protect the family's happiness.

A young man known as the Llano Kid found himself in trouble after a poker game in Laredo turned violent, resulting in the death of a fellow player. Fearing retaliation from the deceased's friends, the Kid fled the town and eventually ended up in the coastal town of Corpus Christi. There, he met Captain Boone, who offered to take him to South America on his ship.

Upon arriving in Buenas Tierras, the Kid met Thompson Thacker, the United States consul, who proposed a scheme to the Kid.

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Llano Kid (Sprague Dalton) — narrator; young Texan outlaw; skilled gunman; dark complexion, black hair, cold blue eyes; cunning, resourceful, ultimately compassionate.

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Thompson Thacker — United States consul in Buenas Tierras; scheming, unscrupulous, and often drunk.

Thacker planned to pass the Kid off as the long-lost son of a wealthy local man, Don Santos Urique, and then steal the man's fortune. The Kid agreed to the plan, and Thacker tattooed an eagle on the Kid's hand to match the one the real son had.

When the Kid was introduced to Don Santos and his wife, Señora Urique, they immediately accepted him as their son.

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Señora Urique — wealthy woman in South America; believed the Kid to be her long-lost son; loving, hopeful, and devoted mother.

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Don Santos Urique — wealthy man in South America; believed the Kid to be his long-lost son; protective father, trusting.

However, the Kid soon found himself feeling guilty about the deception, especially after witnessing the love and care Señora Urique showed him. He decided to abandon the plan to steal the fortune and instead fully embrace his new identity as Don Francisco Urique.

I never had much truck with women in my life, and no mothers to speak of, but here's a lady that we've got to keep fooled.

Thacker, angered by the Kid's change of heart, threatened to expose the deception. The Kid warned Thacker not to do so, revealing that the man he had killed in Laredo also had the same tattoo on his hand. In the end, the Kid continued to live as Don Francisco Urique, with Thacker keeping the secret out of fear for his own life.