Sam laid before his friends the story of Zorn’s curious proposal, but said nothing of the manner of his parting with the adversary. Not that he was disposed to forget the treacherous blow; indeed, his determination some day to visit physical retribution upon the other was stronger than ever, but he felt that there were more important and pressing questions to be answered before he could dispose of his personal feud with Zorn.
The offer made by Zorn puzzled the clan. How could he clean the slate, as he had said? How could he establish, to the satisfaction of the faculty, that the Trojan had not broken the rules? How could he persuade the school that Sam had not been an intentional witness against Walker? The club held long and serious debate on these matters. Step was of opinion that Zorn was acting in bad faith, and cared only to secure the support of the club. This obtained, he would simply not attempt to carry out his agreement.
“Why, he’d just snap his fingers at us and laugh in our faces,” Step insisted. “When we kicked, he’d call us easy marks and ask us what we were going to do about it. But if it ever comes to a vote, count me against Ed Zorn, first, last and all the time.”
Poke agreed with his chum. Zorn was bluffing, he argued. Herman Boyd appeared to be less certain that Zorn could do nothing to make good his offer, but was no more disposed than were the others to accept it. The Shark shrugged his shoulders.
“How can you figure this out?” he growled. “No known quantities! All guesswork and say-so!”
The Trojan, who logically might have been expected to display most interest in the proposal, was indifferent. The feeling that he had been treated with gross unfairness was still strong with him, and made him bitter to a degree which sometimes taxed even Sam’s patience.
Orkney had little to say; but, as Sam observed, was not inclined to regard Zorn as unable to carry out his proposal. Questioned in private, Tom confessed a good deal of appreciation of Zorn’s capacity for mischief.
“I’ve been picking up what I could about the stories that have been spread about the school,” Orkney explained, “and they’re corkers, all right! I don’t wonder we’re in bad. About one part truth and nine parts fake—that’s the way with them. But the grain of fact seems to save the mass of falsehood. And they’re clever and ingenious—that’s what makes it so hard to try to disprove them. So I’m sure Zorn is at the bottom of the row, and just as sure that he knows what he is about, and has some definite scheme he is following out. And if part of that scheme calls for undoing what he’s done—why, he’s the one fellow who can undo it.”
“But how?” Sam queried.
Orkney shook his head. “I don’t know. Mind you, he took care not to give you a line on his method. He said, didn’t he, that all the trouble might have come from a ‘queer accident’ or from ‘crooked work’—he wasn’t saying which it was? Well, then! What he meant was that we’d have to deal with his offer blindfolded, as it were, and trust to his word. He was taking pains not to give you any more information than he had to give. It all fits in with the rest of his performance.”