Firby-Smith did not grovel. “Easy run there, you know,” he said reprovingly. The world swam before Mike’s eyes. Through the red mist he could see Firby-Smith’s face. The sun glinted on his rather prominent teeth. To Mike’s distorted vision it seemed that the criminal was amused. “Don’t _laugh_, you grinning ape!” he cried. “It isn’t funny.” [Illustration: “DON’T _LAUGH_, YOU GRINNING APE”] He then made for the trees where the rest of the team were sitting. Now Firby-Smith not only possessed rather prominent teeth; he was also sensitive on the subject. Mike’s shaft sank in deeply. The fact that emotion caused him to swipe at a straight half-volley, miss it, and be bowled next ball made the wound rankle. He avoided Mike on his return to the trees. And Mike, feeling now a little apprehensive, avoided him. The Gazeka brooded apart for the rest of the afternoon, chewing the insult. At close of play he sought Burgess. Burgess, besides being captain of the eleven, was also head of the school. He was the man who arranged prefects’ meetings. And only a prefects’ meeting, thought Firby-Smith, could adequately avenge his lacerated dignity. “I want to speak to you, Burgess,” he said. “What’s up?” said Burgess. “You know young Jackson in our house.” “What about him?” “He’s been frightfully insolent.” “Cheeked you?” said Burgess, a man of simple speech. “I want you to call a prefects’ meeting, and lick him.” Burgess looked incredulous. “Rather a large order, a prefects’ meeting,” he said. “It has to be a pretty serious sort of thing for that.” “Frightful cheek to a school prefect is a serious thing,” said Firby-Smith, with the air of one uttering an epigram. “Well, I suppose--What did he say to you?” Firby-Smith related the painful details. Burgess started to laugh, but turned the laugh into a cough. “Yes,” he said meditatively. “Rather thick. Still, I mean--A prefects’ meeting. Rather like crushing a thingummy with a what-d’you-call-it. Besides, he’s a decent kid.” “He’s frightfully conceited.” “Oh, well--Well, anyhow, look here, I’ll think it over, and let you know to-morrow. It’s not the sort of thing to rush through without thinking about it.” And the matter was left temporarily at that. CHAPTER XV MIKE CREATES A VACANCY Burgess walked off the ground feeling that fate was not using him well. Here was he, a well-meaning youth who wanted to be on good terms with all the world, being jockeyed into slaughtering a kid whose batting he admired and whom personally he liked. And the worst of it was that he sympathised with Mike. He knew what it felt like to be run out just when one had got set, and he knew exactly how maddening the Gazeka’s manner would be on such an occasion. On the other hand, officially he was bound to support the head of Wain’s. Prefects must stand together or chaos will come.