12
My eyes darted around the room furiously. In the small office, there weren’t many areas to hide. Professor Zimm unfortunately appeared to have been partial to mini-pines, rather than the larger variety that would hide me (yet never fit in here). With a lab bench instead of a desk, there wasn’t an enclave underneath.
“I have to water Tabitha’s trees,” Dean Mendez said. “If I can ever find the right key.”
Taking that as my opening, I darted around the far side of the lab bench. I was still in plain view of anyone who came to stand in front of it, but at least I wouldn’t be seen from the doorway. My pulse slowed approximately one-millionth of a beat per second.
“You don’t have to do that yourself,” Professor Ng said. His voice was softer now. “Can’t you ask someone else?”
“I could, bu
