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I had Lyda paged I had passed a Traveler’s Aid station, an L-shaped desk, where the airline-terminal equivalent of a candy-striper was posted This woaunt and chinless, with one eye askew She earing a Salvation Army uni-form, complete with brass buttons and epaulets I wasn’t sure what the deal was Maybe distraughtpersons in need of Kaopectate werewith the practical kind She was just shutting down her station for the night, and at first she didn’t seem to appreciate my request for help

"Look," I said, "I just flew in from California to speak with a woot to catch her before she hits the parking lot, and I have no idea which exit she’s using Is there any way to have her paged?"

The woman fixed e directory she kept taped to her desk top Without a word, she picked up the phone and dialed "What’s the name?" she asked

"Lyda Case"

She repeated the naed to the Traveler’s Aid station, terh she didn’t seem to requireup and, with a brief word, departed

I had no idea if Lyda Case would show Sheby the tiht have been too tired and cranky to come back for any reason On an impulse, I rounded the desk and sat down in the chair Asuitcase that trailed after hilanced at my watch Twelve minutes had passed I checked the top desk drahich was un-locked Pencils, pads of paper, tins of aspirin, cellophane-wrapped tissue, a Spanish-language dictionary I read the list of useful phrases inside the back cover "Buenas tardes," I mur to death

"So me? I heard my name on the pub-lic-address system and it said to co with her weight on one hip Petite No makeup All freckles and frizzy hair She was dressed in dark slacks and avest-one of those all-purpose bartender uniforms that you can proba-bly order wholesale from the factory Her name was machine-embroidered on her left breast She had on a diahted cigarette, which she dropped and crushed under-foot ~’

"What’s theplace?" Mid-thirties Lively face Straight little nose and a sharp, defiant chin Her saps where her first one into debt for her orthodontia work

I got up and held my hand out "Hello, Mrs Case How are you?"

She allowed her hand to rest in , surreal blue of contact lenses Distrust flickered across the surface "I don’t believe I know you"