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“I bet.”
“It seems with every step we take we get farther away from the truth.”
Michelle said, “But then one little piece falls into place and it’s off to the races.”
“You can’t count on that happening.”
“We try to make our own luck.”
“I guess.”
“Get some sleep. And how about we grab some breakfast around nine? We can talk more then. But right now I need some sleep.”
“Okay, but I’m going to lock my door and then slide the bureau against it.”
“Not a bad idea, actually.”
Michelle left the room and headed to her own. She yawned and stretched some kinks out, and then became fully awake. There was someone moving downstairs. At first she thought it might be Mrs. Burke, but the elderly landlady undoubtedly would have turned on a light in her own inn. Michelle crouched low and slipped over to the staircase, her pistol out. She focused on the movements downstairs.
It actually took a lot of energy to tread quietly. One had to hold his position, shift, and balance at optimal points.
Young. Fit. Trained.
Definitely not Mrs. Burke.
“Maxwell? Is that you?”
“Dobkin?”
“If you have your gun out, put it away. I don’t want to get shot accidentally.”
“Then stop breaking into places in the middle of the night.”
“I have a key. And I’m the police. I’m allowed.”
She holstered her weapon and came down the steps.
“Over here.”
He stepped in front of a window where the moonlight was coming through. Eric Dobkin was in uniform and looked anxious.
“Where’s your partner?” he said. “Upstairs?”
“No, he went out of town. What’s up?”
“Have you heard?”
“Heard what?”
“They found Carla Dukes dead about an hour ago in her home.”
CHAPTER
40
THE PILOT EASILY HANDLED the swirling winds off the East River, and the plane touched down on the runway at LaGuardia right on time. Sean was one of the last passengers off but picked up his pace once he left the jetway and entered the airport. The man he was tailing was up ahead, walking at a leisurely pace. Sean slowed but kept him in sight. The flight attendant on the Bangor-to-New York leg had announced the number of their next gate, and the connecting passengers headed to it. They reached it; the flight was not yet up on the marquee because they had a three-hour layover before the short hop to Virginia.
Sean grabbed some coffee and an egg sandwich. He remembered something, reached in his pocket, and turned his phone on. He immediately saw that Michelle had called numerous times. He quickly phoned her.
