“Eight thousand is the best-speed altitude for that airplane, and he probably has a stiff tailwind. He can do 155 knots true airspeed, and with, say, 20 knots of wind he can reach the mainland in half an hour or so. Ask the state police to try and alert as many South Florida airports as they can, especially Fort Lauderdale, where Vernon says he’s from.”

Tommy got the state police on the line and talked for several minutes. Finally, he hung up, looking discouraged. “They’ve got only one aircraft available, and it’s in Orlando, but they’re sending it south.”

“He’ll be on the ground somewhere by then,” Stone said. “Best thing is for your department to start calling airports and see if anybody spots him. Then at least you’ll know what city you’re looking for him in.”

“I expect he took his duffel with him,” Tommy said, “so we don’t have the rifle. All in all, I’d say this is a total disaster.”

JIM VERNON DESCENDED to 1,000 feet over the water, then crossed the mainland coast, flying over the Everglades. He tapped a code into the GPS for a location he had defined by longitude and latitude, then he set up an instrument approach he had defined as well, then he set the autopilot for the approach. Soon he was flying along a line that was an extension of the runway centerline, watching the GPS count down the miles. When he was three miles out, he spotted the clearing. Nobody would spot it who didn’t know where it was. He brought back the throttle and began his fi nal descent. He landed softly on the grass and taxied the airplane back toward the cabin he had built there. Next to the cabin he had erected a ramada, which amounted to poles and a roof, a hangar without sides, which would make it impossible to spot the red airplane from the air. Once under the ramada, he spun the airplane around and shut down the engine.

He walked over to where a dozen 55-gallon steel drums sat, picked up the hose attached to one of them and refueled the airplane, using a hand pump. Best to have a full load of fuel if he needed to get out of there in a hurry.

He went into the cabin, switched on the generator and the TV and opened a can of chili for lunch, then he sat down and watched a news channel while he ate. Then it came.

“South Florida airports have been alerted by the state police to be on the lookout for a small airplane, described as a red Cessna 182. The pilot, whose name is Jim Vernon, is alleged to be a hired killer who shot and wounded a man in Key West two days ago.”