Booktree.ng_Forgotten-Witness

less. In the tangle of government people looked for surety,
consistency, and assurances that their decisions were correct
and valued. That’s how his senator conducted business.
Eugene almost laughed at that familiarity. His senator, indeed.
“Hey, Genie! Didn’t take you long to poke your nose in!”
Eugene stopped abruptly and turned stiffly, knowing who
hailed him even before he saw the man’s lumbering mass
coming down the hall. Eugene disliked Officer Morgan
because he was disrespectful, out-of-shape, and generally
base. Sadly, Morgan was of sufficient rank that Eugene could
not complain about his slovenliness and his reasonable
requests that he should be addressed as Mr. Weller by all
security personnel had only resulted in the Genie moniker
being picked up by others in the department. Most had the
courtesy to call him that vile nickname behind his back.
Morgan was the exception. Eugene originally thought this
rudeness was a form of social Tourette’s and the man did not
understand how unseemly it was. He was wrong. Morgan
knew exactly what he was doing. Eugene, though, knew when
to pick a fight. The right time was when you knew you would
win.
Morgan pulled to a stop and put his hand on the wall as if to
keep from tipping over once he came to a standstill. He was an
oddly shaped person who carried his weight in his barrel chest.
His head was comparatively small and his legs bowed. He was
an inverted triangle of a man whom Eugene knew to be
unattractive and yet there was a Mrs. Morgan out there
somewhere who thought him decent looking enough to marry.
“Figured you’d be down here,” Morgan chuckled. “Hate to
tell you, you wasted a trip. Poor guy’s just a loon off the
street.”
“If he came in off the street how did he get into chambers,
Morgan? Everyone is supposed to have a pass. Could it be
your officers can’t even handle something as simple as a
vagrant?” Eugene cut his eyes to the man’s hand still splayed
against the wall. That hand bothered him immensely. He didn’t