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well that the slightest nudge sufficed. “I was audited this morning,” Knot said. “A normal from CC—”
    “Oh, yes. They do check us out periodically. They don’t really care about things like our winery or untaxed artifacts. You’ll get used to it. Did you brush her off?”
    “Not exactly. She asked about the leadmuter—”
    “You didn’t show him to her!” Hlet exclaimed, aghast. “We don’t admit to any outsider that—”
    “I had no choice. She already knew of him, somehow; a lie would have been disaster. But I hope she will downgrade his performance in her report.”
    “A CC auditor? They squeeze blood from stones!”
    “And are interested in squeezing gold from lead. But it seems she considered me, ah, attractive as mutants go. So I saw no alternative except to—”
    Hlet’s eyes widened appreciatively. He had the good of the enclave at heart, and was not scrupulous about how that good was achieved. “You romanced a normal?”
    “I thought if she had an emotional attachment, she might be less inclined to—to damage the enclave.”
    “You rogue! You may have real potential in your office. Let’s hope it works. We need the leadmuter, not to mention the penalties we could suffer for—”
    “Yes. Nothing is certain, but it is my understanding that she will go easy on us. Perhaps only a reprimand, and we will not lose the leadmuter.”
    “Keep up the good work, Knot. You should do well here. Your predecessor did an excellent job. I forget his name—”
    “Thank you, sir. I’ll strive to fill his shoes.” Knot departed. He had fulfilled the letter of his duty.
    •  •  •
     
    “You’re a sly one,” his secretary York said, “You used you-know-what on you-know-who, didn’t you!”
    “I have no idea what you mean.” Knot said, smiling. “Anything I did was purely in the line of business.”
    “But some business is sweeter than others. Just watch it doesn’t backfire one day. Suppose one of those floozies you seduce catches on?”
    “ You never catch on, do you?”
    “Of course I catch on. Usually. I think. But I don’t count. I’m not a floozie. And I have my notes. Been some time since I made a note, though.”
    “I’ll update your notebook shortly. What could she prove, anyway?”
    “If she bribed me, she could prove a lot.”
    “I’ve already counter-bribed you.” He stretched, his right hand almost brushing the ceiling while his left fell far short. “What’s the tote, today?”
    “Routine.” Then her phone buzzed. Knot waited while she answered it. Her lips pursed. “Finesse? Certainly; he will be ready.” She disconnected.
    “She’s coming back?” Knot asked, surprised.
    “It seems she forgot to ask a question or two, last time.”
    “Didn’t you give her the literature?”
    “Of course I did! You think I have a death wish? But she’s a CC auditor; she’s clever despite her appearance. A pretty face can mask a viciously cunning mind. I think you’re in trouble, Knot.”
    “No doubt. But I’ve been in trouble before. Maybe she merely hankers after the same medicine she got before.”
    “Especially if she’s pregnant,” York said with irony. “We shall see, all too soon.”
    Finesse arrived on schedule. She was just as pretty as before. Knot knew he could not afford to see much more of her, lest he get emotionally hooked.
    Knot had cleared the hour, knowing he had to employ a deft touch on this case. “So good to see you again, Auditor! I understand there was some item we neglected to cover?”
    She squinted at him as if trying to remember him. That was reassuring; it meant his psi had worked, and that she remembered nothing of their private walk. Her recollection would encompass York and the enclave and the literature she had been given—literature carefully crafted to conceal the enclave’s secrets—and she would know that someone had shown her about, and that he must have been the one, so she had to play along, pretending to remember