As I sat, Davenport leaned back and laced his fingers on his vest. The view behind him was spectacular, a Smoky Mountain postcard in explosive fal color. Squinting into the glare, I recognized my disadvantage. Had Tyrel been in charge, I'd have known the seating arrangement was strategy. I wasn't sure Davenport was that smart.

'Would you like coffee?' Davenport asked.

'No, thank you.'

Looking at Davenport, I had difficulty imagining how he had lasted so long in public office. He was neither tal nor short, dark nor fair, smooth nor craggy. His hair and eyes were nondescript brown, his speech flat and without inflection. In a system that elects its leaders based on looks and eloquence, Davenport was clearly a noncontender. In a word, the man was unmemorable. But perhaps this was his greatest asset. People voted for Davenport, then forgot him.

The lieutenant governor unlaced his fingers, examined his palms, then looked at me.

'Dr. Brennan, some very disturbing alegations have been brought to my attention.'

'I'm glad we're meeting to clear this up.'

'Yes.' Davenport leaned into the desk and opened a folder. To its left lay a videocassette. No one, spoke as he selected and perused a document.

'Let's get right to the meat of this.'

'Let's.'

'Did you enter the site of the Air TransSouth crash on October fourth prior to the arrival of NTSB or medical examiner officials?'

'Since I was in the area, Earl Bliss asked me to stop by.' I looked at the DMORT commander. His eyes remained on the hands in his lap.

'Did you have official orders to go there?'

'No, sir, but—'

'Did you falsely identify yourself as an official representative of the NDMS?'

'No, I did not.'

Davenport checked another paper.

'Did you interfere with local authorities in their search-and-recovery efforts?'

'Absolutely not!' I felt heat rise up my neck and into my face.

'Did you order Deputy Anthony Skinner to remove protective covering from a crash victim, knowing there was risk of animal predation?'

'That's standard protocol.'

I turned to Earl and Larke. Neither man was looking at me. Stay calm, I told myself.

'It is aleged that you broke protocol,' Davenport emphasized my word, 'by removing remains prior to documentation.'

'That was a unique situation requiring immediate action. It was a judgment cal, which I explained to Dr. Tyrel.'

Davenport leaned farther forward, and his tone grew hard.

'Was stealing those remains also a judgment cal?'

'What?'

'The case to which we refer is no longer at the morgue.'

'I know nothing about that.'

The insipid brown eyes narrowed.

'Realy.'