rted Roz.

Helen had recovered her breath by now and readily agreed. "Yeah, I
bet. You know that Vee, Jimbo, was so threatening. I took his picture
and he came right up to me and demanded to know my name and what I was
doing there and...."

"Oh, he's a pain in the ass all the time," Roz interrupted. "He was
bad enough when he was chair of NERD but now that they kicked him up to
a Vee, he's insufferable. Drinks like a fish. Did you tell him?"

Helen laughed. "No, I just yelled, 'Press', at him and got the hell
out of there.

"Just a moment ago, outside, I got a good shot of three guys that were
just coming in. I think one of them was Dean Broadhurst. One of the
guys with him saw me and covered his face--just like you see the crooks
do on TV when they're taken to court."

James, the one male witness, came in with Jean and Andrea. They were
laden with Dunkin' Donut bags, coffee cups, milk and soda.

It was well past the time set for the commencement of the hearing and
the six women and one man good naturedly sat down to await the pleasure
of the Vee. Noblesse oblige never had functioned at Belmont and they
didn't expect it to start now.

Upstairs, things were gradually getting sorted out. Harried custodians
had removed or stacked most of the student chairs and brought in plush
seats. A phone had been located trailing a long, snake-like extension
cord that stretched out the door and back along the hall to the office
it had been liberated from.

The university caterers had brought in a coffee, tea and Danish service
which was in the process of being depleted by the administration's
witnesses. Henry Tarbuck worked the room, spreading ersatz charm like
a bee pollinating from flower to flower.

Chapter 5

The door to the hallway opened suddenly and Henry strode in. He looked
at Diana Trenchant and gestured toward the hearing room. "We're ready
for you now," he announced with all the smarmy triumph of an
interrogator leading the way to the torture chamber.

The accused stood up. In silence, the seven witnesses grouped around
hugging her and each other. The Vee watched, disgust thick as mildew
around a neglected sauna, covering his face.

Disengaging, Trenchant started for the door.

"Here, take this with you just in case you lose your perspective and
need to find it," urged James. He shoved an 8 x 10 inch piece of white
cardboard into her hand.

On it, printed in large letters, was th