"Thought I'd set up next month's budget." Vogel sat at his desk. "By the way, what did you do before you came here?"
"Odd jobs." Amenth's lips twitched.
"Your family live on the coast?"
Sweat glistened on the little man's forehead. "Ah—no. My folks passed on years ago."
Cat and mouse.
"You've done good work lately." Vogel yawned, studying the progress chart on the wall. Behind him he heard a soft exhalation of relief, the furtive rustle of papers as Amenth cleaned off his desk.
When Amenth finally left, Vogel went over to his desk and methodically ransacked the work in process file. It took him two hours to find what he was looking for.
One: A schematic detail on graph paper which resembled no type of circuit Vogel had ever seen.
Two: Fourteen completed shop travelers on which were typed clearly, Call Amenth upon completion. That was not unusual; most expediters wanted to be notified when a hot part hit Inspection. The unusual part was that no inspection stamp had been placed opposite the final operation of Inspect, Identify, Return to Stock. Ergo, Amenth had inspected and stocked the parts himself.
Three: A progress chart with dates, indicating four detail parts still remaining in fabrication. Final assembly date—tomorrow!