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Bryn was, of course, prouns, one shot … it looked bad McCallister didn’t show up to make it better, either She presented the police with a so for a possible invest fired on by an unknown assailant The facts would actually support that, as it happened, and her gun hadn’t been fired The detectives hated the story, of course, but couldn’t argue too much with the evidence that ation roo custody, she was finally released to her lawyer--someone she’d never seen before, a brusque, harried wo yellow cab at the curbside

Patrick McCallister, unshaven and al He nodded to the lawyer, who tossed an envelope in the"There’s ain"

McCallister said nothing, just pulled out into traffic Bryn was monumentally unsurprised to see hiuise "Who was that?"

"Old girlfriend," he said "Best I could do without ringing someone’s bells"

She let that pass "How’s Joe?"

"Out of surgery You saved his life The bullet bounced and did soe in his chest wall; he’d have suffocated before help got there if you hadn’t acted He won’t be able to coest concern"

"It should be," McCallister said His face looked exhausted and pale beneath the thick growth of dark stubble "Round one went to our friend, and he’s proved he’s dangerous Very dangerous Not soood for that We’re rerunning every single e to stay hidden unless we get very lucky You’re still our very best option to uncover hiet back in touch After this"

"This didn’t go badly for him He made off cleanly with a hundred thousand in cash, and took out your protection You’re alone now, and vulnerable He’ll like that" McCallister’s ht, and his eyes very dark "I have to leave you in place, alone He’s watching us Closely"

That was, Bryn assumed, why she was in the back of a cab Maxi too hot for hi linked to her directly

"Do you think you’d recognize hiain?"

"I doubt it, but I can try He was good If it hadn’t been for his contacts, I wouldn’t have suspected a thing, and that was only a trick of the light and the angle"

"He can’t disguise his height that much"

"That’s not a lot to ith"

"I know, but it’s e have to ith, until he gives you so close to Harte’s deadline So far, I have nothing to show for it but two hundred thousand lost and ato be happy I’ll do what I can, but we’re almost out of time"

What he meant was she was almost out of ti ," she said "You know that I want to live"

He pulled the car over and parked, then reached in his coat pocket and took out a silver tube As he unshipped the syringe, he said, "Shoulder" She leaned forward and bared skin for hi at the needle and afterburn this ti "Tomorrow, you leave the office for lunch and head to a place called La Scala Ristorante Be there at one o’clock There’s parking in the back Inside the back entrance there’s a ive you the shot before you sit down to eat"

"Theinto the women’s room You can always say youwill buy it Oh, it helps if you’re on the phone as you walk in The restrooms aren’t clearly labeled, so it’s a sihed, and closed her eyes She felt deathly tired "I need to go to the mortuary" Riley’s words ca There were no days off, no breaks from death Every day was someone’s most emotional moth"

The car was hborhood They were close to her apartain Annie was trying to get hold of her, probably frantic orry

"I wish I could have a normal life," she said "Just pretend to have one, anyway"

McCallister thought for a moment, then said, "Liaht He’s ed to h it were the butler’s idea, and not his own

"I see And will I be dining with Liah Otherwise, you’re stuck withover his shoulder for any sign of trouble "I’ll tell him you said yes"

"You may have noticed I didn’t actually say that"

He turned and looked at her, and all the pretense just … stopped "Come to dinner," he said "You just said you’d like to pretend to have a normal life"

"Did you phrase it that way to see if the protocol inhibitor is still working?"