The man going down the stairway was wearing an open long-sleeved yellow shirt in a coarse-grained tropical fabric, a pair of sunglasses, and white tennis shorts. His feet were in sandals, and his skin was shiny from sunscreen. She knew he was Becker. She also knew what had happened. He had been sunbathing on the balcony beyond the sliding door, which was hidden by the closed curtains. She had walked past, thinking it was just a big window, but he had heard his door opening and knew of the arrival of an enemy. He had waited until the intruder was out of sight at the other end of the apartment and run for the door. Did he have a gun? If he did, it must be stuck in his waistband behind his back.

She came down the stairs fast and caught up just as he arrived on the fifth-floor landing. He was reaching behind him, and she knew he was grasping for the weapon under his shirttail.

Leah stepped to the side behind him, and her left hand grasped Becker’s wrist and held it down behind his back. Her right hand snatched her own silenced pistol from under her arm, brought it up, and fired it into the back of his head. As his body began to collapse, she shot him once more in the head, then released his arm and let him fall.

She turned and climbed back up to the sixth floor. She kept walking to his apartment, picked up the ladder and tool bag, and went down the opposite stairwell she had taken to get up to the sixth floor.

She put her equipment in the van and drove out of the city and up the Hudson. As soon as she was heading north, she took off her hard hat, the vest, hooded sweatshirt, and jacket. When it was fully dark, she passed a series of small towns where she could dump the ladder, tool kit, and work clothes. Then she drove to the airport car rental and returned the van. She took a cab to her hotel, showered, and dressed for dinner. Then she went down to the hotel’s restaurant.

It was late, so she was able to get a table in a corner of the dining room where she could think without being distracted by nearby diners. At this hour they were mostly couples who spoke quietly and paid attention only to each other.