Stone pointed to the end table where he had left it. Ed walked over and picked it up. “Yes, sir?” He listened for a moment. “No, sir.” He listened some more. “I’m sorry, but no, sir.” He held up the phone. “You want to speak to him again?”

Stone shook his head.

“Good night, sir.” Rawls broke the connection and handed the phone to Stone.

“I take it you don’t want to talk to them.”

“You take it right.”

“Why not?”

“An uncomfortable number of people have already come to know about this situation, and I see no profit in adding to that list,” Ed said. “The more people who know about it the more dangerous this gets.”

“I understand,” Stone said, pocketing his phone. He wondered if Will Lee understood, or if the people at the Agency did.

They went back into the study to finish their brandy.

“You two don’t look very happy,” Dino said.

“Conversations with powerful people make me nervous,” Ed said. He picked up his cognac and raised his glass. “Cheers.”

26

STONE WORKED AT BEING AN attorney all day, and at lunchtime, Fred brought him a sandwich at his desk.

“Thank you, Fred. You might ask Mr. Rawls if he’d like some lunch.”

“I visited his quarters a few minutes ago, sir, but he was not present, nor is he anywhere else in the house.”

“Did you see him leave?”

“No, sir.”

“And you have no idea where he’s gone?”

“No, sir.”

“Please check his suite every half hour and let me know if he turns up.”

“Yes, sir.” Fred departed.

Stone called Dino.

“What?”

“Ed Rawls has disappeared from the house.”

“Maybe he went for a stroll—people do that.”

“Ed isn’t the stroll type.”

“How do you know? On Islesboro he could take a stroll every hour, and you wouldn’t know it.”

“Nevertheless, I’m worried.”

“And you want me to put out an APB on him, is that it?”

“Not exactly. Could you just ask your people to keep an eye out for him?”

“Keep an eye out where?”

“I don’t know, exactly, in my neighborhood, I guess.”

“You mean you don’t want me to block the bridges and tunnels? The airports? Check the hospitals?”

“I don’t think that will be necessary.”

“I don’t think anything will be necessary at this point in time. If he doesn’t come home for dinner, call me again. You can be such an old woman, Stone.” Dino hung up.

Stone buzzed Fred. “Will you take a walk around the neighborhood and see if you see Mr. Rawls?”

“Of course, sir. How far around the neighborhood?”

“A couple of blocks in all directions.”

“And if I find him, what shall I do?”

“Just make sure he’s okay, and call me if you find him. Just observe from a distance.”

“Certainly, sir.”