Before Stone knew it, he was back in the alley, in the car. Fifteen minutes later, he was back at the Connaught. As he walked into the room, the phone was ringing. He picked it up.

“Hello?”

“Thank you,” Carpenter said.

“Did you get the job?”

“I’ve been acting in the job since returning to London,” she said. “This morning’s proceeding was part of an investigation to determine whether I shall keep it.”

“I lied,” Stone said. “You didn’t have to kill her.”

“Yes, I did,” Carpenter replied. “But thank you. I hope I’ll see you again before long.”

“Good luck.”

“Thank you. Goodbye.” She hung up.

Stone was back at home in Turtle Bay by late afternoon, New York time.

Holly greeted him warmly. “That was quick,” she said. “What was it about?”

“I have a feeling I’m not supposed to tell you,” he said. “You want to go to Elaine’s for dinner?”

“Dino called and suggested we meet there; so did Lance. I said yes to both of them.”

20

LANCE’S CADILLAC WITH the diplomatic plates was double-parked outside Elaine’s, and the man with the briefcase with a hole in it was back in his old spot by the awning. Lance got out of the car almost as soon as Stone and Holly got out of the cab. They all shook hands, and, as they entered the restaurant, Lance whispered something to Holly.

Before they could sit down at their table, Holly said, “Excuse me, I have to go to the powder room.”

Stone and Lance sat down. “Did you send her to the powder room?” Stone asked.

“Yes. How’d it go in London this morning?”

“You mean you don’t already know?”

“I’d like to hear it from you.”

“I lied for her. You knew I would, didn’t you?”

“You might recall that not only did I not ask you to lie, I didn’t even tell you why you were going. Should anyone in an official position ever inquire about the hearing, you might remember to mention that.”

“Is anyone in an official position likely to inquire?”

“In the words of the immortal Fats Waller, ‘One never knows, do one?’ ”

“Will she get the job?”

“There will have to be a cabinet meeting on the subject, but I’m reliably informed that she is being favorably considered. Your testimony this morning was the final piece of evidence taken. She will be the first woman to hold the job, but her credentials are as top-notch as those of any man they could have considered, including the fact that both her father and grandfather were in the service, going back to the Second World War.”

“She mentioned that once.”

“The father mostly fought his battles with the IRA. It was the grandfather who was the swashbuckler. Did she tell you about him?”

“Not much.”