I scooped up my last three spears, and when I did, so did Porcius for the first time. The soldiers cheered, sensing that the end was near.

I gritted my teeth and let one fly. Short, but closer. I moved back, ran forward for all the momentum I could get, and threw again. The wooden shaft slipped from my sweaty palm and spun end over end in the air, landing on its metal tip halfway between myself and Porcius before it toppled over. Pilate’s laugher filled my ears. Out of the corner of my eye I could see him holding his sides, his white head bobbing up and down on the couch. I turned in his direction, planted my feet firmly, and let my last spear fly at the balcony!

It was my best throw of the day, the heavy point burying itself in a beam no more than a yard above Pilate’s startled face. The parade grounds grew deathly still, but the procurator quickly recovered and jumped to his feet.

“Kill him, kill him, kill him!” he screamed, pointing to Porcius and then to me.

Porcius raised his three spears. He exhaled deeply and threw, first one, then another, and finally the third. I dived for the post and tripped, instinctively grabbing its top for support as the first missile went by on my right and the second moaned past my left ear. I tried to move back to my right but my ankle had become tangled in the chain. Move! Move! I pulled against the chain with all my strength. The third spear was so close … so dose. I watched it approach as if it were all happening In slow motion … and then I felt its black forged tip smashing into my tired chest …

The ringing persisted.…

Even when I buried my head under the pillow I could still hear it—imploring, insisting, demanding.…

I propped myself up on both elbows, reached for the noisy intruder, and put it to my ear.

“Good morning,” said a lilting voice. “It’s seven thirty—and the downtown temperature is seventy-one degrees!”

I let the receiver fall to the floor and blinked several times until my eyes were able to focus on a garishly framed print of a toreador hanging next to a mirror above a dresser. I blinked again and shifted my sights to close range. I was fully dressed—shirt, tie, Calvin Klein suit, shoes!

Next to the bed, the night-table lamp was on. In its light I could see my ring, gold Omega watch, and wallet. The watch was still ticking, and when I checked my wallet all the credit cards and cash were in place.

This is impossible, I thought I can’t be in my room at the Century Plaza!