(lxxxii.)

"Buh-- uh, hi."

Muffy stared blankly at the two men outside her door.

"Can I help you?" she repeated.
"Hey... we're looking for J. P. Brandenbury. Is he here?"

She rolled her eyes.

"No. He's not. Sorry," she said, as she started to shut the door.

The District Coordinator put his foot into the doorway, and asked, "uh, I don't suppose you could tell us where he is?"

She shook her head.

"Ugh. Just go away. Seriously. I told you he's not here. That should be good enough."
"But--"
"If you don't leave, I'm going to call the cops."

The District Coordinator pulled his foot out of the doorway, and she slammed the door as hard as she could.

"That was slick," Louis said sarcastically.
"Oh, yeah, 'cause you're stuttering was so much slicker."
"...so, now what?"

The District Coordinator sighed.

"Now, we do it the hard way," he said, pulling out his pistol. "Just watch."

Louis raised his brow.

The District Coordinator smiled.

"This never gets old," he admitted, before kicking the door in.



[chapter lxxxiii.]