"She said I was too old! Overqualified and old!" Over the phone, Diana sounded like she was ready to stab Helen.

"You didn't get the job." Peter sighed. And he was stuck in traffic. Would it be one of those days?

"Of course, I nailed the job! Why else would the Bureau spend so much money on my education," she hissed. "That bitch called me old! Women are supposed to support each other!"

"The halo got taint?" Peter could not help smiling. He hoped Diana could not hear that.

"You're damn right it has. Thank god the previous assistant had things in good order. Two names: P. Sullivan and Prager & Vaughn."

"Got it," he said, taking notes.

"Is that a private call?" Peter heard Helen's voice in the background.

"No, ma'am," Diana said.

"It's Helen. I'm not the Queen. Where is my lunch?"

Diana hung up.

Peter made a few phone calls while the car moved at a glacial pace. Finally, he drove down to the FBI garage and took the elevator up.

"Diana is in," he told Neal when he passed the doors. The kid was on his feet.

"Nice."

"She picked up two clues that might point us to the threat against Helen Anderson," Peter briefed him as they walked towards the conference room. "Two names: P. Sullivan and Prager & Vaughn. My buddy at the FDA gave us his files on P&V."

"Pharmaceuticals," Jones said, handing them the material as they passed the door. "Multilevel company, probably responsible for a third of the stuff in your medicine cabinet."

"Oh. Product recalls," the kid noted. "Rumors of bad manufacturing. Not sure I'd trust these guys to make me feel better."

"Paul Sullivan is the head of new product development," Jones said. "He was called in to clean up P&V's most recent cold-medicine recall. He pulled the company stock back from the ledge."

"If Helen's investigating him, there could be a problem with one of their new products," Peter thought aloud and Neal nodded. "With his track record, Sullivan might have a lot to hide."

"Yeah, or a lot to lose," the kid added. "By the time P&V puts a drug on the market, they've invested a billion dollars in it."

"That much at stake," Jones said. "Someone might kill to keep a secret."

Peter studied the material in the file, and an idea began to take form.

"Neal, let's go talk to Sullivan."

"Peter, we start flashing badges at P&V, we're gonna crash Helen's story."

"Depends on which badges we flash."


"You mocked me when I only used a pair of glasses for my alias," Neal pointed out when he saw Peter's disguise.

"Yeah, Mr. Donnelly. I remember. You made me into Mr. Satchmo."

"I told you I was sorry for that."

"I don't remember mocking you," Peter frowned.

"Are you telling me I inspired you?" Neal beamed. Peter sent him a glance and adjusted his glasses.

"Cowboy up and play your part now."

They walked inside the building of P&V. Peter held up his badge wide and clear.

"Ted Brown, FDA. We're looking for Mr. Sullivan," he told the receptionist. "Don't bother checking. I'm not on his calendar."

They walked directly towards the staircase.

"He's unavailable, sir," the receptionist called after them. "You can't go up there."

"Thought I was the only one who could impersonate federal agents," Neal whispered on his way up beside him.

"I'm authorized to go undercover. There's a difference."

"And the glasses?"

"I use them to make a point." Peter held up his badge to a man coming down the stairs. "FDA. Looking for Paul Sullivan." He looked around on the floor. "Paul Sullivan?"

"Got a plan to go with that badge?" Neal wondered.

"We're flushing, like with quail. I fire off shots, and then you keep an eye out for a reaction."

"Got it."

"Excuse me," another lady behind a desk said, rising to stop them.

"FDA!" Peter returned, almost jamming the badge up her face. "FDA!" he continued down the hall. A woman hurried across the corridor from one room to another. "I'm looking for Paul Sullivan."

A man stepped out in the corridor.

"I'm Paul Sullivan." He gestured to his room. "Please." Peter pocketed his badge, and they both followed him into his office. "I've asked my counsel, Mr. Carter, to sit in."

"What can we help you with, Mr. Brown?" Mr. Carter asked. "We met with the FDA two weeks ago."

"That was a scheduled meeting."

"Today, you thought you'd surprise us?" Sullivan asked as Neal sat down and started to play with his phone.

"Surprise," Peter said and sat down. Neal glanced into the room across the hall where the woman who hurried there seemed very busy with the binders. His thumbs worked on a text.

"Who's this?" Sullivan asked, gesturing to Neal. Neal gave him a hint of a polite smile, playing uninterested.

"My associate." At least he did not get a spectacular name. 'Get ext. 2614 out of her office ASAP' he sent to Jones.

"This company has had a bad run under your watch," Peter said, opening his briefcase. Neal got a 'Watch this' in return from Jones. "It's my personal mission to make sure you've cleaned up your practices."

The phone in the room across the hall rang. Neal glanced in there as the woman took the call.

"Hello? … Boots?" she almost jumped out of her chair. "How did he get out? … Yeah, I'm on my way."

And so she was. He texted a 'thanks' to Jones.

"Should we start with offshore marketing… or recalls?" Peter continued.

"I need to take this." Neal rose and gestured with the phone. "Uh, will you be all right without me?"

Peter sent him a look.

"We'll be fine." Neal could feel Carter's and Sullivan's looks, but none dared to speak up. Peter would not go easy on them. "Gentlemen, if you'd take a look at this number right here, that one puzzles me."

"What's confusing, Mr. Brown?"

"The FDA operates under the information we have. Your company's not known for its transparency."

Neal picked the lock on the drawer of the woman's desk.

"Mr. Brown, despite what you're insinuating, we're in the business of helping people," Sullivan rose, annoyed. "P&V's the reason you're gonna live long enough to find yourself browsing the aisles for adult diapers. And you'll thank us for it."

Neal pulled out the paper of the top file. It had a lot of text censured with a black pen. 'Cost benefit analysis', 'full recall', 'leave existing in circulation'.

"Okay," Carter said, sounding like he wanted to calm the heat while Neal in the next room knocked the edge of the paper at the table's surface and then carefully pulled the sheet in two.

"Nice speech," Peter said, unimpressed. "I want Q.C. reports, stage-four clinical trials, and R&D for all products launched within the last six months — All of it - today."

Neal replaced the top with the text and put the blank part into his pocket.

"We'll ship it over," Sullivan answered Peter, and Neal popped up in the doorway.

"Are we done here? I got a thing."

Peter sent the two men glares.

"We're done."