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stash.
    Nancy soon became absorbed in her work. She needed the second quarter financial reports from last year. They should be in the top drawer of Peggy’s file cabinet. As she rose from her desk Nancy could hear the last drips of coffee falling into the pot. Perfect. She would multi task, grab a cup, the reports, and life would be good.
    The first part of her plan worked out but when she opened the file where the reports should have been all she found was a yellow sticky note with Peggy’s handwriting.
    “Fred borrowed 06/28/05”
    It didn’t surprise her to find Peggy’s note. She always created a paper trail. That’s why they made such a good team. Peggy was meticulous and Nancy shot from the hip. Peggy had been Nancy’s best hire. She had great people skills, was very organized, and a great self motivator. At first Nancy wondered if Peggy was a threat to her career. That she might somehow be a Nancy-in-training. However, she would remind herself that Peggy was just an administrative assistant and that made her feel better. The only fault that Nancy found with Peggy was that she was younger and prettier. Nancy knew that it was more of a weakness within herself but nevertheless she couldn’t help but hold it against Peggy.
    “Not a problem, more time to suck in this sweet caffeine.” Nancy told herself as she placed both hands around the cup feeling the radiating warmth. She strolled out of her office and headed down the hall to the accounting department. Her high heels clicked on the floor tiles.
    Nancy was confident that she would be able to find the file because Fred, being an accountant, was border line insane when it came to neatness. “Hell, the file probably had it's own private corner of his desk all to itself” she mused.
    Immediately Nancy knew something was wrong when she arrived at entrance to the accounting department. Papers were strewn about the commercial grade carpeting. The bamboo plant that usually sat on the stand outside Fred’s office had been knocked to the floor. A pizza box lay on it's side with the remaining slices of pepperoni laying on the carpet.
    Nancy felt her heartbeat rise. “Fuck me, Fred had a stroke or a heart attack. Poor bastard was probably working late when it hit him and there was no one around to help. What a way to go.”
    The light to his office was off. That and the idea of Fred sprawled across is neatly organized desk scared the hell out of her. Nancy knew she had to find out what truly happened, to see if there was anything should could do and yet she still stood in the hallway with her fresh coffee warming her hands.
    It was time. She had to do something, “be a big girl and just get it over with” Nancy convinced herself. She took a step and froze dead in her tracks. There was a popping sound, like someone snapping bubble wrap between their fingers.
    “What the f….” she whispered. Nancy could feel the sweat under her arms and down her neck. Looking down she could see that the sharp point from the heel of her shoe had punctured a piece of paper causing the sound.
    “Big brave Nancy” she mumbled and relaxed a bit.
    Fred’s door was closed. This was the fun part. Nancy grasped the doorknob and pushed it open. The office was in the same state as the common area she had just walked through. Papers, office supplies, trash, reference books, all lined the floor. Fred was sitting in his chair, upright, mouth open, head cocked back, eyes staring at the acoustic ceiling tiles, as though he had fallen asleep in his chair, but with his eyes open.
    “F-fred…”
    At the sound of Nancy’s voice his head snapped forward. Fred started to stand up.
    “Fred. What the hell happened? You ok?”
    When he did not answer she took a step backwards. Pop.
    “Fred!”
    His hand dragged along the desk knocking more papers to the floor as he continued toward Nancy. She took another step back. Pop.
    “I swear to god Fred if you don’t…”
    Right before he lunged at her,