'0K, stand up slowly with your hands where I can see them.  Don't make any sudden movements.'

The Doctor's faint smile drained into his stomach as Alison Hayes produced a compact white gun and pointed it towards his head.  Her aim was unwavering, her expression resolute, and he had the definite feeling that she had done this before.  She even took the precaution of blocking the lift doors with one foot, denying him an easy escape.

He raised both hands and carefully stood.  'I know what this must look like,' he said, his tone heavily persuasive, 'but I can assure you, I discovered the body myself only a few seconds ago.'  As Hayes's eyes flickered downward, he added, 'And yes, I'm very much afraid he is dead.  He's been electrocuted.'

'Save it for later.  We're taking a walk down to the main bar.  I'll feel safer when there are a few more people about.'

'Tell me, Ms Hayes, do hand-held energy weapons come as standard issue for hoteliers these days?'

'Move!'

He was frustrated now, and angry that such illogical suspicions were delaying his investigation of a serious crime.  'Why don't you engage your brain?' he spluttered.  'If you think I murdered this man, then where is my weapon?  If we were in the lift together, why is there no sign of a struggle?'

Hayes seemed to listen to some of his words, at least.

'All right,' she said, 'out here, hands against the wall.  We'll see if you're carrying or not.'

With bad grace, the Doctor did as he was bidden.  Hayes patted down his legs and arms, then felt inside his frock coat.  To his alarm, she produced the gun with which Bryan Melrose had been shot.  He had forgotten it was there.  'Well look at it,' he insisted, aware of his own voice sounding quite flustered.  'You can see I've removed the cartridge.  It's useless.'

'Perhaps.  But it might not have been two minutes ago.'  Hayes threw her find to one side, well out of the Doctor's reach, and began the arduous task of sorting through his outer pockets.  From the left one she produced a screwdriver, a bag of jelly babies and a clockwork frog, which was actually a unit of currency in the Alpha Mardis systems.  She struggled with a child's yo-yo, which had become wedged into a hole in the lining, and the Doctor snaked down a hand to assist her.

'You can put that straight back where it was,' Hayes grunted.  But he had already half turned and was working on the problem with one hand inside the pocket and one outside.

The yo-yo, eventually, came free into Hayes's grasp.  By this time, of course, the Doctor was holding her gun.