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
31