"That's all." Morely flicked the disconnect switch.
He got up, strode around the office, then consulted his watch. There
would be time for a cup of coffee before Bond arrived. Time for a cup of
coffee, and time for the employees in Sector Fourteen to scurry about,
getting their quarters in shape for an inspection. They would have no
way of knowing which quarters were to be checked, and all would be put
in order.
He smiled. It was a good way, he thought, to insure that there would be
no sloppiness in the homes of his people. And it certainly saved a lot
of inspection time and a lot of direct contact.
He went out of the office, and walked slowly down to the snack bar,
where he took his time over coffee, looking critically at the neat
counter and about the room as he drank.
The counter girls busied themselves cleaning up imaginary spots on the
plastic counter and on their equipment, casting occasional, apprehensive
glances at him. Finally, he set his cup down, looked at the clock over
the counter, and walked out.
Bond was waiting in the office. Morely examined the younger man,
carefully appraising his appearance. The sector leader, he saw, was
properly attired. The neat uniform looked as if freshly taken from the
tailor shop. The man stepped forward alertly, to halt at the correct
distance before his superior.
"Good evening, sir. My heli is on the roof."
"Very good." Morely nodded shortly and took his notebook from his
pocket. "We'll go to Building Seven Twenty-three."
He turned and walked toward the self-service elevator. Bond hurried a
little to open the door for him.
* * * * *
Bond eased the helicopter neatly through the entry slot and on down into
one of the empty visitor spaces in the landing area at Block 1022. The
two men walked across the areaway to an entrance.
As they went up the short flight of stairs into the hall, Morely took
careful notice of the building. The mosaic tile of the stairs and floor
gleamed from a recent scrubbing. The plastic and metal handrails were
spotless. He looked briefly at his subordinate, then motioned toward the
door at their right.
"This one," he ordered.
Bond touched the call button and they waited.
From inside the apartment, there was a slight rustle of motion, then the
door opened and a man stood before them. For an instant, he looked
startled, then he straightened.
"Paul Graham, sir," he announced. "Apartment 7A is ready for
inspection." He stepped back.
Morely looked him over critically, saw nothing that warranted criticism,
and went inside, followed by Bond.
Cursorily, the district leader let his gaze wander about the apartment.
The kitchen at his left, he saw, was in perfect order, everything being
in place and obviously clean. He went to the range and motioned with his
head.
"Pull the drip pan," he ordered.
Graham came forward and pulled a flat sheet from the range, then opened
an access door at the front of the stove.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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