RANSVESTIA

mand but it carried sufficient force to cause cowboy boots to jump. He obeyed the order stealing a sidelong glance at Harry and the pistol as he turned and raised his hands. He froze with his back towards Harry.

"I'm not armed," he offered almost in a whine. His voice had a strange quality to it.

Harry could not be certain whether cowboy boots had seen him closely enough in the dim light to see his costume. He would have to keep the man facing away from him at all times. Harry was a little uncertain about his next move.

"Is your partner downstairs?" Harry asked.

"Yeah."

"All right, walk ahead of me and don't turn around or I'll use this pistol," Harry said evenly. He had decided to take the man to the sixth floor and lock him in the office with his younger friend.

"You didn't shoot Paul?" cowboy boots wanted to know before Harry could order him to move up the escalator.

"No," Harry assured him. The man was acting very nervous and Harry worried about what would happen if cowboy boots chanced to turn around and see Harriet holding a gun on him instead of the ex- pected uniformed nightwatchman.

"Go on up that escalator now move," Harry ordered.

Cowboy boots slouched and shuffled a few steps forward. Harry was moving also about three feet behind him. Suddenly without warn- ing the man lunged backwards thrashing out with his arms as he turned. Harry instictively tried to sidestep but an arm struck him forcefully knocking him into a counter. The pistol discharged wildly with a re- sounding crack before slipping from his hand to the floor. His wig went awry and Harry could not see anything with one eye. The man's body was against his and they grappled and stumbled together on the floor. The wig fell off. Cowboy boots knee was in his stomach. While Harry struggled in a tangle of skirts to recover, cowboy boots was regaining his feet. When his adversary stepped to get clear Harry's hand by

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