But Leah was torn. It was just after closing time, precisely the perfect time to find drunken potential victims. If she left the girl here, she could drive from lot to lot for another fifteen or twenty minutes, scan fifteen more establishments, and maybe spot the Chrysler 300. It was possible she could even get Weiss tonight.

No, she knew. It wasn’t even a decision. Leah would have to get Weiss some other way, some other time. Having discovered this stupid girl, she could not undiscover her. Leah would have to get her to safety and then see what was left of the night. She pulled her car around the corner of the nearest building and parked on the street so the girl wouldn’t see instantly that her car wasn’t a police model. She got out of her car and opened the trunk. She had put a towel and bathing suit in there a few days ago, planning to spend time on the beach watching for Weiss. All she knew right now was that she was probably going to need the towel. She picked it up, closed the trunk, clicked the lock on the doors, and began to walk around her car in the direction of the Audi.

She stayed in the dark, shadowed area where she was difficult to see. She didn’t want to have a local police cruiser enter the lot and stop so the cops could ask her questions, and she didn’t want to have bystanders watching her attend to the girl and get a good look at her. She walked about halfway to the Audi, heard a car door shut, and then saw another shape moving along on foot from the other direction. Leah stopped and stood beside a parked van, so her silhouette dissolved into its shadowy side.

The man was walking along quietly but not slowly. He was definitely heading toward the Audi. Her eyes found him in the dim glow of light from the cloudy sky. She held her breath. It could be. He was about the right height and the right build. He was wearing a baseball cap tonight, so she couldn’t see the receding hairline if it was there. The bill of the cap came down from his brow so she couldn’t make out much of his face either.

Leah reached into her jacket pocket and extracted the pistol that had been drilled to remove serial numbers. She screwed the silencer onto the threaded barrel. Then she placed the towel over it and began to move.

The man was walking faster. Then, suddenly, he heard the sound of a car engine, louder than most, come up the alley toward the lot. He stopped, and Leah stopped. For a full second, then another, the man remained frozen in place, listening. Leah heard the car turn and pass out a driveway between buildings and onto the street in front.