“That’s where we close the office, and you go somewhere nice, and you have all the office calls forwarded to your cell phone. You can reach me on my cell.”

“Where should I go?”

“Jesus, I don’t know. Isn’t there somewhere in the country you’d like to be, besides behind that desk?”

“What’s going on, Stone?”

Stone took a deep breath. “Devlin Daltry, or somebody who works for him, murdered Celia last night.”

Joan turned white.

“Now don’t faint on me.”

She took a couple of deep breaths. “I’m okay. What happened?”

“He somehow tracked her down in New Jersey and, well, it wasn’t pretty.”

Joan put a hand to her mouth. “Her head. That’s what he did, didn’t he? Like the sculpture.”

Stone nodded. “You don’t want more details, believe me.”

“So, I’m running from Devlin Daltry?”

“I think anybody connected with me might have problems.”

“When can I go?”

“Why aren’t you already gone?”

She got up and headed for her office. “Herbie’s going to call you every day, so we’ll know he’s alive!” he shouted after her. “I think.”

Joan had her bag and was letting herself out the front door. “Bye!” She waved and was gone.

Stone ran to the front door and checked the block while she got into a cab. He waved her off, then he went inside and up to his bedroom. He opened the safe in his dressing room and took out his favorite little .45 and a holster.

He would be going armed for the duration.

44

Stone left the house by the rear door and walked into Turtle

Bay Gardens, the common area behind all the Turtle Bay houses. The paths were lighted, so finding his way in the dark was not a problem. He walked across the garden and used his garden key to open the door leading to Second Avenue. He looked both ways for a full minute, then stepped out into the street and hailed a cab.

Fifteen minutes later he was seated at Elaine’s with a Knob Creek on the rocks before him, and Dino was working his way toward him from the front door, table by table, greeting acquaintances. Finally he plopped himself down and accepted a Scotch from a waiter.

“So, how was your day?” Dino asked.

“I hardly know where to begin,” Stone said.

“Just begin, and don’t be a pain in the ass.”

“Okay, Herbie’s off the hook for Cheech’s murder; they’ve arrested his buddy, Gus, whose fingerprints are on the knife. Herbie’s gone to his aunt’s in East Hampton, I hope to God.”

“And?”

“And Joan’s on vacation, sort of, to keep Devlin Daltry from killing her.”

“And?”

“And that’s about it.”

“That’s funny, you seem to be forgetting the part about why Devlin Daltry might want to kill Joan.”

“Oh, that.”