“Come on, Gary,” said Leo, who was in the elevator and holding the door open. “I’m starving. You know gettin’ electrocuted makes me really hungry.”

Gary Merker was still steamed and shook his head in anger and frustration. Before getting on the elevator, he slipped a finger in and out of his nose at lightning speed, then flicked it at me. “That’s what I think of your fucking story,” he said.

The elevator doors closed. Lesley Carroll looked stunned. “Welcome to the newspaper biz,” I said to her.

4

“I’VE HAD BETTER DAYS,” I told Trixie, who’d just been foolish enough to ask me how things were going. So I told her.

“Have you talked to Sarah since this morning?” Trixie asked.

“No,” I said. “She tried me on my cell but I didn’t answer it.”

“That’s mature.”

“I’m just pissed, okay? And I know it’s not her fault. It was Magnuson’s call. He put her in an impossible spot.” I shook my head, looked into my crème caramel decaf lattacino thingie. I had no idea what it was. Trixie offered to buy when we met at the Starbucks, and I’d told her to surprise me. We’d grabbed a small table in the back corner and had snared a couple of comfy, leather-covered chairs.

“And we had such a nice time last night,” I said, more to myself than Trixie.

“What, did you go out or something?”

“No, no, we stayed in. Cost me twenty bucks, though.”

“Really? Sarah makes you pay for it? That’s actually a very reasonable price, you know, and if there were any extras, it was a real bargain.” She grinned slyly at me. She was looking particularly fetching today, in a black cowl-neck sweater, black jeans and boots, her black hair pulled back into a ponytail.

I ignored all that and said, “She’s got this interview coming up, for foreign editor, and it’s Magnuson’s decision, so she probably didn’t feel she could come to my defense. Figured Magnuson would accuse her of not being objective.”

“Because she sleeps with the reporter in question. For twenty bucks.”

“The money actually went to Paul,” I said.

Trixie raised an eyebrow. “Now that’s too kinky, even for me.”

I took a sip of my drink. I didn’t know what it was, but it was sweet, and pretty good. “Anyway, look, these are my problems, not yours. When we spoke on the phone, you said you were in some kind of trouble.”

“Yeah, well, I did, didn’t I.”

“Sarah was wondering what kind of trouble you could be in that would bring you to call me. You need more chaos in your life? If that’s what you want, then I’m definitely your guy.”

Trixie smiled. “Sarah’s tough on you, you know.”

I went into self-deprecation mode and shrugged. “Look at what she has to put up with,” I said.

“I could put up with you,” she said, without a hint of sarcasm.

“So come on,” I said. “What’s up?”