“Yes, it did go off,” Lance said. “It’s silent, unless you program it not to be. The signal was transmitted to Operations, at Langley, and they called the house, but you didn’t answer, so they called me. Are you all right? Is someone in the house?”

“I’m all right,” Stone said, “and it appears I’m alone. I heard the phone ringing in Dick’s little office, but by the time I was able to get the door unlocked, it stopped. Then you called.”

“Are you alone up there?”

“Dino’s here, but he’s in the guesthouse.”

“There’s a manual for the alarm system somewhere in the house, probably in the little office, if you want to change the alarm from silent. It appears to be working properly.”

“Yes, I had the house checked out by an expert, and he says it’s pretty much impenetrable, unless you saw through a wall.”

“What expert?”

“A burglar.”

“What?”

“A guy Dino and I once busted for more than a hundred burglaries in New York. He’s out of prison now and living here. He’s a cabinetmaker.”

“Well, I guess that’s one kind of expert. If you’re all right, I’m going back to bed.”

“Sure, and thanks for calling.” They both hung up.

Suddenly, the front doorbell rang, and there was a hammering on the front door. Stone ran to the door, switched on the front porch light and looked through the peephole. Dino was standing there in his pajamas and robe. Stone opened the door.

“What’s going on?” Dino asked.

“I heard a noise in the house,” Stone said. “What woke you up?”

“The phone. I had just gotten up to piss, and I heard it ring. I wasn’t sleepy, anyway, so I came over.”

Stone closed the door. “Come in the study. You want a drink?”

“Couldn’t hurt,” Dino said. “Keep out the cold night air.”

“Oh, let me show you something.” He led Dino into Dick’s little office and showed him the array of weapons. Dino picked up the officer’s .45. “I like this,” he said. “I’ll sleep with it under my pillow.” He checked and found a full magazine in the gun.

Stone pointed to a shelf that held a lot of gun leather. “Find yourself a belt and holster.” He went to the bar and got down a couple of glasses. As he was about to open the door to the ice machine, he heard the noise again.

Dino approached. “Is that the noise you heard?”

“Yes,” Stone said sheepishly.

“The ice machine, making ice?”

Stone sighed. “Yes. I wonder why I’ve never heard it before.”

“I think you’re a little too tightly wound,” Dino said. “Sit down and drink that bourbon.”

Stone followed orders.

24