beside the brick stairs up to the front porch. He saw two agents in a car half a block down the street. He wondered if Thomas would
tell his daughter that this house might look like just a home-sweet-home,
but the security in and around the place was state-ofthe-art.
“It’ll be dark in about three hours,” Adam said, looking up from
his watch. “Let’s make our phone calls, talk to the guys in New
York, get the status on everything, make sure they stay alert. I have
this gut feeling that Krimakov is going to try to get into NYU
Hospital soon. Now -we can tell them exactly who they’re up
against. As you said,Thomas, there are always leaks. Detective Gordon,
for example. I can see her telling everyone in sight. If he
doesn’t act in the next twenty-four hours, then he won’t, because
he’ll know it’s a trap.”
Adam looked down at Becca, who was staring intently at the
house. He knew she was trying to visualize her mother there, perhaps
standing next to her father, smiling at him, laughing. Only she
wasn’t there, had never been a part of the two of them. He said,
“Get rid of that ridiculous hair dye, will you, Becca?”
Thomas turned at his words. “That’s right. Your hair is very
blond, just like your mother’s.”
“Mom’s was more blond than mine,” she said. “But all right,
Adam, but I’ll have to go to the store. Who wants to go with me?”
“Me and about three other guys,” Adam said. The look on her
face had changed, lightened, and he was pleased.
At seven o’clock that evening, Savich and Sherlock,Tommy the
Pipe, and Hatch arrived at Thomas’s house for pizza and strategy,
pizza first. Adam doubted there would be much helpful strategy,
but it was good to have everyone together. Who knew what ideas
might pop out after hot, cheese-dripping pizza?
Savich was carrying a baby draped over his right shoulder. The
kid was wearing only diapers and a little white T-shirt. Adam
looked at Savich, checked out the baby’s feet, and said, “You’re this
little guy’s father?”
“Don’t act so surprised, Adam.” He lightly rubbed his hand over
his son’s back. “Hey, Sean, you still awake enough to punch this guy
in his pretty face?”
The baby sucked his fingers furiously and poked out his butt,
making Savich grin.
“He’s nearly down for the count,” Sherlock said, lightly touching
the baby’s head, covered with his father’s black hair. “He sucks
his fingers when he doesn’t want to be disturbed and he knows
you’re talking about him.”
“What do you think, Adam? Six-ounce free weights for my
boy?”
Adam stared at the big man holding his kid who was madly
sucking his fingers, then threw his head back and laughed. “This is
not good. Jesus, I can nearly see him lifting three envelopes in each
hand.” And he laughed and laughed. “Maybe he can even handle a
stamp on each envelope.”
There were ten pizzas spread around Thomas Matlock’s living
room an hour later. Hatch was hovering over the large pepperoni pizza., his shaved head glittering beneath a halogen floor lamp, talking
even as he stuffed a big bite into his mouth. “Yipes, this sucker’s
really hot. Oh boy, delicious. But hot, real hot.”
“I hope you burned your tongue,” Adam said as he pulled the
hot cheese free of a slice of pizza from another box that was closer
to him than to anyone else, and reverently lifted it up. “Serves you
right for being a pig. God, I love artichokes and olives.”
“Nah, my tongue isn’t burned. It’s just a bit of a sting,” Hatch said,
and pulled up another piece. After he took another big bite, he said,
Now, just to make sure everyone’s on the same page. All federal
agencies are up to date on Krimakov. The New York Bureau guys are
going over the car the guy dumped you out of, Becca, with every
high-tech scan, every piece of sophisticated equipment they have.
Haven’t found anything yet. I was really hoping they would find
something, but this guy Krimakov is careful, real anal, one of the
techs said. He didn’t leave anything helpful. Rollo and Dave, who