“Damn, it’s hard to drive in heels,” Ricki cursed. The drive in the car was made a little more agonizing by the fact that the angles and distances were all off. Ricki had not taken notice that she had actually shrunk and inch or two. Brenda had as well, but she had not yet had the opportunity to realize that she was shorter.
“Just stay calm,” Tabitha said from the passenger’s side. “You’re not going to hit anything.”
“I wish I felt that way,” Ricki responded. “But I’m a little worried.”
They got to the lab about 15 minutes later. The rest of the drive had been fine. Ricki was able to get used to her heeled shoes hitting the pedals. The three women exited the car and walked up to the front of the building.
The lab where Rick worked was a part of a building owned by Collings University. However, the college did not own the lab. It was more like a tenant, though the people who worked in the lab got most of their work through the university. In fact, the mixtures that Rick had been working on were a project for the university. The thought had crossed Ricki’s mind about the results of that now. Wouldn’t they be surprised to learn the interesting side effects created by the accidental mixing of the two liquids?
“Alright,” Ricki said as they walked closer. “We’re going to have to get past Ray.”
“Who’s Ray?” Brenda asked.
“The security guard,” Tabitha answered. “I’ve talked with him before when I had to bring something to Rick.”
Ricki formulated the plan. “You’re going to have to do that again. Only this time, the story is you’re coming to get something for me. Hopefully he’ll let us in without any trouble.”
Tabitha was skeptical. “Are you sure he’s not going to let me in, but make you two wait?”
Ricki smiled. “I think we can charm our way in, right Brenda?” Brenda returned Ricki’s smile.
“OK, but let’s not go nuts,” Tabitha said. “We can’t change him. Otherwise someone’s going to think that the lab was robbed or something.”
“Good point,” Ricki agreed. “We’ll just have to bypass him for now.”
“Just one more thing, then,” Tabitha said. They were about 10 feet from the front door. She stopped walking, just to make sure that Ray wouldn’t be able to hear anything. “Who’s in there tonight?”
“It should only be Greg at this time,” said Ricki. Dr. Greg Pilsner was one of Rick’s closest colleagues. They had worked together on several projects. He was 44 years old, married, but with no children. He had brown hair and brown eyes. He was thin and fit, but not muscled. Still he was handsome for his age. He didn’t want to have children because he felt his work was more important. This was very upsetting for his wife, Diane, but she still held hope he would change his mind. However, at 41 years old herself, she knew that she wasn’t getting any younger. She had already decided that if he didn’t want a child within another year, she was going to leave him.
“OK, so I’m getting something for Rick from Greg,” Tabitha said. Ricki nodded. “Do you still have the can?” Ricki held it up. The pink smoke was clearly visible through the clear container where it was held. “Maybe we’d better put it in my purse.” Ricki put it in Tabitha’s purse, after tightly sealing the nozzle. “Here we go,” Tabitha said. They walked through the door.