“What can you hope to gain from such an arrangement?” Hap went on.
“Nothing, probably. The chances are we’ll find Craig Warner and turn the map over to him. But if no such person exists, the map will be mine.”
“And you rate the map so highly?”
Walz began to feel hemmed in by his own conflicting statements. He hesitated, then said, “I want that map. Maybe I misled you at first because I didn’t know anything about you or your motives. But there’s an outside chance Stony’s map may have some value.”
The Scouts were far more inclined to trust the motel owner now that he made a frank admission of his interest in the paper.
“Well, what do you say?” he prodded.
“We’ll have to think it over,” Mr. Livingston stalled.
“How long will you need?”
“We figured on going to the telegraph office again before we pull out—and to the funeral.”
“I’ll meet you here at eleven o’clock,” Walz suggested. “By that time, I must have your answer.”