Page 32 - Three Adventures
P. 32

Deflator Mouse


          Captain  Jack  underlined  something  he  had  written.  “Better  than
        nothing.  Let  me  have  it  ASAP.  Now,  what  about  your  password?
        Who did you give it to?”
          “Nobody!”  Beveledge  tensed  his  drooping  arms,  palms  open.  “I
        know better than that. There are too many sensitive files only I can
        access.”
          “But that means—”
          “Yes, Captain, I know. Deflator Mouse could have read every bit
        of data concerning Project Salamander, as well as some personal files
        I  wouldn’t  want  to  share  with  anybody  ever;  but  never  mind  that.
        What’s important is that I did take care of two things before I came
        here. First, I immediately changed my password, for whatever good it
        will  do  to  close  the  barn  door  after  the  horse  has  been  stolen.
        Second,  I  printed  out  every  one  of  my  files  that’s  been  changed
        within the past month. It will take me God knows how many hours
        to go  through  it all, but I’m going  to make  sure nothing  has been
        altered.”
          Lampson  wiped  his  well-tanned  forehead.  “Okay.  That  does  it.
        This has gone from the pranks of an unstable element to full-scale
        espionage.  I  can’t  sit  on  a  breach  of  security  like  this.  I’ll  have  to
        notify Washington.”
          “Wait a minute, Captain. Let’s not be hasty. I know most of my
        people  quite  well.  None  of  them  are  spies  or  terrorists  or
        communists. Litmus Industries cannot afford to lose this contract. If
        you call out the hounds prematurely, you and I will be looking for
        work in a matter of weeks. I’m sure you’re aware that salaries are not
        as high elsewhere.”
          Lampson’s eyes narrowed. “Are you suggesting I neglect my duty,
        Doctor Beveledge?”
          “Certainly not! I am suggesting, however, that duty  in the  larger
        sense  may  best  be  served  by  continuing  our  own  in-house
        investigation a little longer. You have your methods, and I will not
        interfere  with  any  interviews  you  may  wish  to  conduct  with  my
        people. Personnel records and security checks are already available to
        your office, and—who knows?—maybe we’ve missed a bad apple. I
        am  going  to  pursue  my  own  line  of  inquiry  in  the  meantime.  The


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