Killjoy

'Yes,' she answered.

The woman smiled. 'You're right on time. Mr. Carter will appreciate that. He keeps a tight schedule.'

Avery leaned forward as the woman picked up the phone to announce her. 'Is there a ladies' room close by?'

'It's down the hall, past the bank of elevators, on your left.'

Avery glanced behind her and considered her options. She could be late for the appointment, try to run like hell down the

mile-long hallway and rip off the damn pantyhose, or she could-

The receptionist interrupted her frantic thoughts. 'Mr. Carter will see you now.'

She didn't move.

'You may go inside,' she said.

'The thing is…'

'Yes?'

Avery slowly straightened. The panty hose stayed put. Smiling, she said, 'I'll go on in then.'

She pivoted and held her smile as she grabbed the edge of the desk, and then tried to walk as though her shoe still had a heel.

With any luck, Carter wouldn't even notice her condition.

Who was she kidding? The man was trained to be observant.

Tall, distinguished-looking, with a thick head of silver-tipped hair and a square chin, Tom Carter stood when she entered. She hobbled forward. When she reached the chair in front of his desk, she wanted to throw herself into it, but waited for him to

give her permission.

Carter reached across the desk to shake her hand, and it was then, as she was stretching forward, that her panty hose gave up

the fight. The crotch was now down around her knees. In a panic, she grabbed his hand and shook it vigorously. Too late she realized she was clutching the heel of her shoe in her right hand. She hadn't sweated this much since she took the graduate

record exam.

'It's a pleasure to meet you, sir. An honor, really.

You wanted to see me? My, it's warm in here. Would you mind if I removed my jacket?'

She was rambling but couldn't seem to stop. The remark about the temperature had gotten his attention,. though. Thank God,

the rumors were right. Carter did have his own thermostat and liked to keep his office just below freezing. It was like an Alaskan tomb. Avery was surprised she couldn't see her breath when she exhaled. That's when she realized she wasn't breathing.

Calm down, she told herself. Take a deep breath. Carter enthusiastically nodded. He didn't mention the heel that had dropped

on top of a stack of files on his desk. 'I thought it was warm, but my assistant keeps telling me it's cold in here. Let me just turn down the thermostat a notch.'

She didn't wait for him to give her permission to sit. The second he turned his back, she snatched the heel off the files -which

she noticed were labeled with her name and the names of the other members of the pen - and then fell into the chair. Her

panty hose were in a wad around her knees. She frantically unbuttoned her jacket, removed it, and draped it over her lap.

Her arms and shoulders were covered in goose bumps seconds later.

Suck it up, she thought. It was going to be okay. Once he sat down behind his desk, she could slowly work the hose down

her legs and get rid of them. Carter would never be the wiser.

It was a great plan, and it would have worked if Carter had cooperated, but he didn't return to his chair. He walked over to

her side, then leaned back to sit on the edge of his desk. She wasn't short by Margo's standards, but she still had to tilt her

head back in order to look into his eyes. There seemed to be a twinkle, which she thought was quite odd, unless, of course,

he enjoyed firing people. God, maybe that rumor was true too.

'I noticed you were limping. How did you hurt your knee?' he asked. He bent down to pick up the barrette that had fallen to

the floor.

'An accident,' she said, taking the barrette and dropping it in her lap.

She could tell from the quizzical look in his eyes she hadn't given him a satisfactory answer.

'An elderly lady… quite elderly, as a matter of fact, driving a rather large vehicle, didn't see me when I was walking toward

my car in my parking garage. I had to jump out of the way so she wouldn't hit me. I ended up on top of a Mercedes, and I think that's when I broke my heel and bruised my knee.' Then, before he could make a comment about the unfortunate incident, she plunged on. 'Actually, I only loosened the heel then. It broke off in the elevator as the doors were closing on my head.' He was staring at her as though she had just turned into a babbling fool. 'Sir, it hasn't been a good morning.'

'Then I'd brace myself if I were you,' he said, his voice suddenly grim. 'It's going to get worse.'

Her shoulders slumped. Carter finally went behind his desk and sat down. She seized the opportunity. Slipping her hands under

her jacket and skirt, she worked the panty hose down her legs. It was awkward but doable, and, other than appearing to be squirming in the hot seat, she managed the feat. While he opened her file and began to read the notes he or someone else had compiled against her, she grabbed the hose and wadded them into a ball. She had her shoes back on by the time he looked up

at her again.

'I received a call from Mike Andrews,' he began. There it was again, that grim, you're-gonna-get-your-ass- fired tone of voice.

Her stomach felt as though it had just dropped to her ankles. 'Yes, sir?'

'I believe you know him?'

'Yes, sir. Not well,' she hastened to add. 'I found his number and called him before I left the office.'

'And during that phone call you convinced him to deploy a SWAT team to First National Bank on…' He looked down again, searching the file for the location.

She rattled off the address, adding, 'The branch is near the state line.'

He leaned back, crossed his arms, and said, 'Tell me what you know about these robberies.'

She took a deep breath and tried to relax. She was on safe ground now, in control. Since she had typed all the agents' reports

into the computer and looked at the bank tapes, she'd learned, and pretty much memorized, every little detail.

'The robbers call themselves the Politicians,' she said. 'There are three of them.'

'Continue,' he urged.

'There have been three robberies in the past three months. The men, all wearing white clothes, entered the first bank, First National Bank and Trust on Twelfth Street, on March fifteenth, exactly three minutes after the bank had opened for business.

The men used guns to subdue the personnel and one customer, but they didn't fire those weapons. The man shouting the orders held a knife against the security guard's neck. When the other two were running toward the door, the leader stabbed the guard, dropped the knife, and then left. The guard had done nothing to provoke the man. There was absolutely no reason to kill him.'

'No, there wasn't,' Carter agreed.