Four other men were smoking at the bar, sprawled on bar stools. Two of them Raymond recognized from their visit to his apartment. Behind the bar was an overweight bearded man washing glassware. The rest of the restaurant was empty.

Vinnie waved Raymond to his booth.

“Sit down, Doc,” Vinnie said. “A coffee?”

Raymond nodded as he slid into the banquette. It took some effort because of the nap of the velvet. The room was chilly, damp, and smelled of the previous night’s garlic and the accumulated smoke of five-years’ worth of cigarettes. Raymond was happy to keep on his hat and coat.

“Two coffees,” Vinnie called out to the man behind the bar. Wordlessly, the man turned to an elaborate Italian espresso machine and began manipulating the controls.

“You surprised me, Doc,” Vinnie said. “I truly never expected to hear from you again.”

“As I mentioned on the phone there’s another problem,” Raymond said. He leaned forward and spoke in a low voice just above a whisper.

Vinnie spread his hands. “I’m all ears.”

As succinctly as he could, Raymond outlined the situation with Cindy Carlson. He emphasized the fact that all suicides were medical examiner cases and had to be autopsied. There were no exceptions.

The overweight man from behind the bar brought out the coffees. Vinnie didn’t respond to Raymond’s monologue until the bartender had gone back to his glassware.

“Is this Cindy Carlson the daughter of Albright Carlson?” Vinnie asked. “The Wall Street legend?”

Raymond nodded. “That’s partly why this situation is so important,” he said. “If she commits suicide it will undoubtedly garner considerable media attention. The medical examiners will be particularly vigilant.”

“I get the picture,” Vinnie said as he took a sip of his coffee. “What is it exactly that you would want us to do?”

“I wouldn’t presume to offer any suggestions,” Raymond said nervously. “But you can appreciate that this problem is on a par with the Franconi situation.”

“So you want this sixteen-year-old girl to just conveniently disappear,” Vinnie said.

“Well, she has tried to kill herself twice,” Raymond said limply. “In a way, we’d just be doing her a favor.”

Vinnie laughed. He picked up his cigarette, took a drag, and then ran his hand over the top of his head. His hair was slicked back smoothly from his forehead. He regarded Raymond with his dark eyes.

“You’re a piece of work, Doc,” Vinnie said. “I gotta give you credit for that.”

“Perhaps I can offer another year of free tuition,” Raymond said.

“That’s very generous of you,” Vinnie said. “But you know something, Doc, it’s not enough. In fact, I’m getting a little fed up with this whole operation. And I’ll tell you straight: if it weren’t for Vinnie Junior’s kidney problems, I’d probably just ask for my money back, and we’d go our separate ways. You see, I’m already looking at potential problems from the first favor I did for you. I got a call from my wife’s brother who runs the Spoletto Funeral Home. He’s all upset because a Dr. Laurie Montgomery called asking embarrassing questions. Tell me, Doc. Do you know this Dr. Laurie Montgomery?”