Hugo was as pale as chalk. His eyes burned darkly. He felt that his universe was slipping from beneath him. “You know, then,” he said.

“I don’t know, Hugo. I merely guessed. I was going to ask. Now I shall not. Perhaps I do know. But I had another question, son—”

“Yes?” Hugo looked at Woodman and felt then the reason for his success as a coach, as a leader and master of youth. He understood it.

“Well, I wondered if you thought it was worth while to talk to your father and discover—”

“What he did?” Hugo suggested hoarsely.

Woodman put his hand on Hugo’s knee. “What he did, son. You ought to know by this time what it means. I’ve been watching you. I don’t want your head to swell, but you’re a great boy, Hugo. Not only in beef. You have a brain and an imagination and a sense of moral responsibility. You’ll come out better than the rest—you would even without your—your particular talent. And I thought you might think that the rest of humanity would profit—”

Hugo jumped to his feet. “No. A thousand times no. For the love of Christ—no! You don’t know or understand, you can’t conceive, Woodie, what it means to have it. You don’t have the faintest idea of its amount—what it tempts you with—what they did to me and I did to myself to beat it—if I have beaten it.” He laughed. “Listen, Woodie. Anything I want is mine. Anything I desire I can take. No one can hinder. And sometimes I sweat all night for fear some day I shall lose my temper. There’s a desire in me to break and destroy and wreck that—oh, hell—”

Woodman waited. Then he spoke quietly. “You’re sure, Hugo, that the desire to be the only one—like that—has nothing to do with it?”

Hugo’s sole response was to look into Woodman’s eyes, a look so pregnant with meaning, so tortured, so humble, that the coach swore softly. Then he held out his hand. “Well, Hugo, that’s all. You’ve been damn swell about it. The way I hoped you would be. And I think my answer is plain. One thing. As long as I live, I promise on my oath I’ll never give you away or support any rumour that hurts your secret.”

Even Hugo was stirred to a consciousness of the strength of the other man’s grip.

Saturday. A shrill whistle. The thump of leather against leather. The roar of the stadium.