On the fifth floor, the entrance to the Bayard apartment stood openthey assumed the locks on the gate and lobby doors were enough protection. I shook my head disapprovingly: this is how ax murderers get into your home.

I slipped into the entry area, pausing to admire a Louise Nevelson bronze before passing through the arched doorway that led to the interior. I tried to remember how to find Catherine’s room. The path to Renee’s study lay to the left; I thought Catherine’s bedroom was in the opposite direction.

As I walked down the hall, a vacuum cleaner roared into life. I jumped, but moved boldly forward. A furtive glance showed me a cleaning crew in action. Elsbetta stood with her back to me, barking orders in Polish. Excellent.

At the end of the hall, I came to Catherine’s room. The door was shut. I gave a perfunctory knock and went in. The bedroom was empty, but an open door on the near wall led to a bathroom. When I peered around the door, I saw Catherine in front of a dressing table trying to button a man’s shirt with one hand. Her dark hair fell unbraided down her back. She didn’t look around at my entrance, but kept stubbornly trying to manage the buttons.

“It’s easier if you don’t watch in the mirror,” I said.

She turned, startled. “Oh! It’s you. I thought it was Elsbetta. Why are you here? Is Benji okay?”

I pulled up a chair to face her. “I saw him yesterday. He seemed fine, he asked after you, but there are a couple of problems.”

Her eyes grew dark with dismay. “Like what?”

“Like the Chicago cops showed up late yesterday to look for him. Apparently, because I’d been there. So we need-“

“I thought you were a detective.” Her voice was scornful. “Don’t you know to watch for tails?”

“Check for tails! Now, you tell me. Gosh.” I slapped my forehead. “Listen, you little mutt, I drove in circles at six in the morning. The streets were empty. No one was behind me. One of two things happened: they put a tracer on my car so they can watch me on a screen instead of wasting gas. Or they have been tracking down every person I know and checking up on them. Father Lou had time to get Benji into a safe place inside the church, but the kid can’t stay there much longer. For obvious reasons, I can’t take him to any of my friends. I was hoping you could talk to your grandmother and get her to agree to let him stay at your New Solway house. She’s basically on the side-“

“No! She thinks I’m in love with Benji, or in love with Benji’s adventure. She wants him out of-the country. The only thing she and Daddy agree on is that Benji needs to go back to Egypt. If I tell her I know where he is, she’ll call the justice Department. But they won’t deport him, they’ll lock him up. You said I didn’t read any news, but I’ve been reading on this and reading on this and reading on this. It happens all the time, people are caught with their visas expired, and they can’t even go home. They get put in detention some place and held for months. I promised Benji, I won’t let him down.” She started to cry.