"I'm sure," Tom said. "Only I want to tell you this, Colonel. I've broken my connection with Homelovers. I'm on your side now."
"Side? There are no sides in this issue, Mr. Blacker. As far as I'm concerned, Homelovers is nothing but a flea on the lip of a lion. A damned annoying flea, maybe—but nothing more than that. Now what do you want?"
"I have to talk to you about something. Something I just found out. Will you listen to me?"
The colonel leaned back, looking at his watch.
"Five minutes," he snapped.
Tom talked for fifteen. Mordigan didn't call a halt until he was finished, listening without a change of expression. When Tom ran out of words, he merely tapped his fingers on the desk.
"And that's your whole story?" he said gently.
"Yes, sir. I know it's a wild one. That's one of the things they're counting on. It's just wild enough to get me put into a laughing academy, where I can't do them any mischief. But I had to take that chance, Colonel."
"I see. And this—man you killed. What's happening about that?"