Page 45 - Three Adventures

Deflator Mouse

closet where the stun-guns, handcuffs, and gas bombs were stored.
One of his men had reported seeing the poster on the door of the old
dirigible hangar—about three hours after someone else had ripped
the staples out and thrown it into a non-classified trash bin. By this
time, a file had already been started on the mildly-irritating broadsides
of unknown origin; Lampson had insisted on tracking down the
discarded 18” by 30” placard. Garbage collection was halted while the
security forces presented the curious spectacle of armed men in
uniform raking through the motley detritus of Litmus Industries for
the remainder of the day. Retrieved from a truck whose
antepenultimate pick-up had been the cafeteria, the poster’s remains
now resided in the armory in a tightly-sealed plastic sack. Captain
Jack held his breath and opened it.
Still recognizable as the universal yellow-and-black radioactivity
warning, Lampson and Beveledge had scrutinized the soggy
cardboard for other clues on the day it was found. Dark smudges,
when examined under ultraviolet light, revealed themselves as the
outlines of mouse ears over two of the black triangles; the ink had
been washed away by a powerful broth of Seafood Surprise, diet cola,
and melted Jell-O. The poster itself was standard issue; the stationery
supply room in the main administration building had a stack of them.
Who had access to those supplies? Everyone. The trail was another
dead-end. But now Captain Jack realized that he had been barking up
the wrong tree. Maybe he did have the clue Beveledge was looking
for. He put the poster back in its bag and locked it away. Its odor
didn’t reach his consciousness as he called the director on an unlisted
extension number.
“Yes? Who is it?”
“Lampson, Dr. Beveledge. I’ve got a—”
“Wait a minute. Prove it. What’s the password?”
“The hell with that. Listen to me, will you?”
“Not until you give me the sign. All calls on this line are being
traced automatically. If you are not authorized to call this number,
you will be arrested within moments.”
Captain Jack shrugged. Why did civilians have to go overboard
when you gave them a few simple tips on how to run a tight ship?
Couldn’t they get anything right? “Okay, okay, Doctor. The word for
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