Part 76 (1/2)

'That's what I figure, too.'

'When do you want to run the gauntlet?'

'A few minutes,' I said. 'I might as well finish this coffee.'

'Listen,' he said, rising, 'what the h.e.l.l. Enjoy it.'

He returned to his spot at the bar. I finished my coffee, got up, went to the lavatory. There I checked my.32 and made sure I had a round under the hammer and three more rounds to back it up. I could have asked Durkin for a couple more cartridges to fill the empty chambers. For that matter, he'd have given me a larger gun with more of a punch to it. But he didn't even know I was carrying the.32 and I hadn't wanted to tell him. The way things were set up, I wasn't going to have to shoot anybody. The killer was supposed to walk right into our arms.

Except it wasn't going to happen that way.

I paid the check, left a tip. It wasn't going to work. I could feel it. The son of a b.i.t.c.h wasn't out there.

I walked out the door. The rain had let up some. I looked at the Mercury and glanced at the buildings across the street, wondering where the police sharpshooters were planted. It didn't matter. They weren't going to have any work to do tonight. Our quarry wasn't taking the bait.

I walked down to Fifty-seventh Street, staying close to the curb just in case he'd managed to find a spot in a dark doorway. I walked slowly and hoped I was right and he wouldn't try to do it from a distance, because a bulletproof vest doesn't always stop a bullet and it doesn't do anything to protect you from a head shot.

But it didn't matter. He wasn't there. d.a.m.nit, I knew he wasn't there.

Still, I breathed easier when I walked into my hotel. I may have been disappointed but I was also relieved.

There were three plainclothesmen in the lobby. They identified themselves right away. I stood around with them for a few minutes, and then Durkin came in alone. He went into a huddle with one of them, then came over to me.

'We struck out,' he said.

'Looks that way.'

's.h.i.+t,' he said. 'We didn't leave many loopholes. Maybe he smelled something but I don't see how. Or maybe he flew home to f.u.c.king Bogot yesterday and we're setting a trap for somebody who's on another continent.'

'It's possible.'

'You can go get some sleep, anyway. If you're not too wired to unwind. Have a couple of drinks, knock yourself out for eight hours.'

'Good idea.'

'The guys have had the lobby staked out all night. There've been no visitors, no check-ins. I'm gonna keep a guard down here all night.'

'You think it's necessary?'

'I think it can't hurt.'

'Whatever you say.'

'We gave it our best shot, Matt. It's worth it if we can smoke the f.u.c.ker out because G.o.d knows how we could get anyplace combing the city for emerald smugglers. Sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you don't.'

'I know.'

'We'll catch the c.o.c.ksucker sooner or later. You know that.'