“You heard what I said. That’s sufficient!”
“Not for me!” Burke smiled broadly. “I know you too well, Joe.”
“What do you mean?”
“That poker face of yours. It wouldn’t have slipped up when you saw the newspaper, unless—”
CARDONA was staring with keen interest as Clyde Burke paused to let his words make a definite impression.
“—unless,” resumed Burke, “you were thinking of something else. Unless you were so sure of yourself that the wisecracks in the newspapers would come as a surprise.”
“So you think I’ve got something up my sleeve?”
“I know it,” returned Clyde. “Positively! I was sure when the others left; I stayed on that account. I’ve been watching you.”
“You’re a good guy, Burke,” declared Cardona, gazing speculatively toward the wall. “You’ve always treated me right. So I’m going to return the favor. I’m going to let you have a story for the Classic that will knock the daylights out of these phonies.”
Burke grinned at Cardona’s reference to the other newspaper reporters.