“Right, right,” Stone said. He took a shower, and by the time he was out, his headache was gone, though he felt a little fuzzy around the edges. He got packed, then put their luggage on the elevator, which he rarely used, and sent it to the basement. “Dino’s going to drive us to the airport, just to see that we get off safely.”

“Sounds good to me,” Sarah said, getting into her coat. “Let’s get out of here.”

They rode in Dino’s police car, with a young detective for a driver. Not much was said, but finally, Stone had time to think, and he was not happy. When they arrived at the airport, Sarah handed him the tickets and her passport. “Will you get us checked in?” she asked. “I’ve got to go to the loo, and it can’t wait.”

Dino sent the young detective to escort her, and Stone got a porter and sent their luggage inside. He shook Dino’s hand. “Thanks for ferrying us out here,” he said.

“Don’t worry about what’s going on here,” Dino said. “I’ll take care of it.”

“You should get the feds in on the bombing; they might come up with something.”

“Already done; what’s left of the van is in their garage now.”

“Listen, Dino, I don’t know if you’ve thought about this, but with Mary Ann and Ben in Brooklyn, and with Sarah and me out of the country, you’re all that’s left for these people to go after. You’re going to have to watch your ass.”

“I always do,” Dino said. “You relax and have a good time. Call me, and I’ll update you on what’s happening.”

“I’ll do that,” Stone replied. They hugged, and Stone followed the porter into the terminal. There was no line at the first-class counter, so check-in was quick. Stone set Sarah’s luggage on the scales. He was thinking hard.

“Is this everything?” the woman at the counter asked. “Don’t you have any luggage?”

He made up his mind. “There’ll just be one traveling. Do you mind if I leave my bags here for a few minutes? I’ll come back for them when I’ve seen my friend off.”

The woman handed back the tickets and the passports. “Sure, I’ll keep an eye on them.” Stone stuck the tickets into his pocket, just as Sarah arrived.

“Are we all set?” she asked.

“Yep; let’s go find the first-class lounge.”

They sat quietly and had coffee and pastries while Stone had a look at the Times. “Well, we made the front page,” he said.

“I don’t want to hear about it,” she said. “I’m putting it out of my mind—and for God’s sake, don’t mention it to my parents. They’ll go bonkers.”

“All right.”