We grinned at each other, then suddenly both began laughing. We laughed until our ribs ached and the tears streamed down our cheeks.

“What do we do now?” Mr. Contreras asked when he’d recovered from the fit.

“Sleep. I can’t do anything else without a few hours in bed.”

“You know, doll, I’m so … I don’t know what the word is. I don’t think I can sleep.”

“Wired,” I supplied. “Yeah, but you’ll crash pretty soon and then you won’t be good for anything. Besides, Peppy needs you. What I think …”

I squinted at my watch. Five-fifteen. It was early to call anyone, but I didn’t want to go back into our building alone right now. My own apartment should be secure, but if Vinnie was tied in to Chamfers at all, he could let a whole gang into the building to waylay me. Or worse yet, my neighbor. I was damned if I was going to cry for help to Conrad Rawlings. That meant I needed to turn to my friends the Streeter Brothers. They ran a furniture-moving business, but did a little security work on the side.

As it turned out, I didn’t wake Tim Streeter. He and his brother Tom were already up, getting ready for an early breakfast before starting a moving job. If I could wait until six he’d be able to bring a crew of five over to my building on their way to the move.

I was ravenous. We whiled away the time at the all-night diner where we’d stopped last night. Mr. Contreras, who hadn’t thought he was hungry, packed away three fried eggs, hash browns, a side of ham, and four pieces of toast. I stopped after two eggs and the hash browns. I hoped no one was going to jump us: a full stomach isn’t the best preparation for battle.

Tim and Tom Streeter showed up at ten after six, whistling lightly and joking with their crew. The Streeter boys are both enormous, topping six-four and muscled to move pianos down five flights of stairs. The three other men weren’t exactly tiny either.

Leaving two of the crew out front, the rest of us went around to the back. If someone was hanging out on the stairs there, we’d be able to spot them before walking into a trap. The sun was well up now; it was obvious that the area was clear. We checked behind the garbage cans in the basement entry just to be sure, then went up to my place. No one had penetrated my security system.