“Well, we’ll need every point we can pile up,” went on the manager. “Where’s Holly, by the way? I thought I’d find him here, and there are a lot of things I want to talk over with him. Where is he?”
They were just telling Kindlings where Holly had gone when the lad in question came back. There was rather a queer look on his face.
“Oh, Dan, you’re here,” greeted Holly. “Come on out, I want to talk to you.”
“And you don’t want us to hear; is that it?” asked Sid with a laugh. “I like your nerve.”
“Come on, Dan,” went on Holly, without replying to the chaff, and there was something in his manner that impressed every lad in the room. Kindlings must have noticed something, too, for he got up quickly, and joined his chum. As he closed the door after him, Tom and the others heard Dan ask:
“I don’t know,” answered Holly. “I’m afraid so. Wallace just had me on the wire. You know, Wallace from Exter, their manager. He asked me a queer question. Wanted to know if our list of competitors that I mailed him for the games next week, was to be revised.”
“Yes. He asked if those were the fellows who were going to take part in the games, and of course I said they were. Then he came back at me with this:
“‘Well,’ he said, ‘I just thought I’d give you a chance to make any change if you wanted to, before we took action. But if it’s your last word, all right, and you’d better come over and see me, or I’ll come and see you.’”
“Yes,” answered Holly, “and of course I wanted to know right away what the trouble was. He said he couldn’t tell me over the wire, but he was anxious for me to call, and I said I would. He intimated that his committee might make a protest against some of our fellows.”
Tom and the others heard no more, for Dan and Holly moved off down the corridor, but they had caught enough to make them stare wonderingly at each other.
“What do you know about that?” asked Tom, slowly.
“That’s the limit!” exclaimed Sid. “Going to protest against some of our fellows! Who? And for what?”
No one could answer him, and for a moment there was momentous silence.
“Has anyone done anything, or does anyone know anything, that might make one of our contestants ineligible?” asked Phil.
“Not me,” replied Tom, and the others said the same.