"I did."
Fernack tied the newspaper up in his slow powerful fists.
"You realise," he said deliberately, "that if you have any special information, it's your duty to cooperate with the proper agencies?"
"Yes, Henry."
"Well?"
Fernack didn't really mean to blast the challenge at him like a bullet. It was just something that the Saint's impregnable sangfroid did to his blood pressure that lent a catapult quality to his vocal cords.
Simon Templar understood that, broadmindedly, and smiled with complete friendliness.
"If I had any special information," he said, "you might easily persuade me to do my duty."
The detective took a slight pause to answer.
It was as if he lost a little of his chest expansion, and had to find a new foothold for his voice.