The cab stopped at Stone’s corner. “Herbie,” Stone said, “please don’t get yourself killed. At least, not yet.”
“Okay,” Herbie said.
Stone got out of the cab and watched Herbie disappear into the night.
34
Stone worked through the morning, clearing his desk so that he could leave early to meet Celia in Connecticut and avoid weekend rush-hour traffic. Joan came into his office.
“We haven’t heard anything from Bernard Finger’s office about his financial statement, have we?”
“I haven’t,” Stone said. “Call Sam Teich over there and tell him I expect the accounting today. I want to get the settlement paid and the money in the bank.”
“Okay.” She left and came back. “Sam Teich has already left the office for the weekend; won’t be back until Monday. Mr. Finger has left, too, for Las Vegas, expected back on Monday.”
“Damn it,” Stone said, “I forgot to hound them about the accounting. Well, I guess we’ll just have to wait until Monday morning. Call Sam Teich first thing. I may wait until Monday morning to come back to town.”
“Well,” Joan said, “don’t wear yourself out up there.”
Stone was upstairs packing a bag when Dino called.
“Hey.”
“Good morning.”
“Afternoon.”
“Oh, all right, good afternoon. What’s up? I’m trying to get out of here for Connecticut before the rush-hour traffic starts.”
“Big news: It’s already started.”
Stone looked at his watch: two p.m. “Shit,” he said.
“I just called to let you know Devlin Daltry made bail at night court. Apparently, he had a lawyer standing by.”
“Swell, so he’s loose on the town again.”
“Yeah, watch your ass.”
“I hope he tries to follow me; I’ll lose him in the wilds of Connecticut. He’ll never find his way home again.”
“That fast car of yours is gonna get you killed yet.”
“What kind of car does Daltry drive? I mean, apart from the stolen Taurus he used to run over me.”
“A white BMW M6, the sports coupe. That was the first thing we checked after your bump-and-run experience.”
“It wasn’t a bump-and-run experience; it was a hit-and-run experience.”
“Whatever.”
“It was an experience I hope you never have, being hit and runned.”
“How’s the leg?”
“Several colors of black, blue and yellow, thank you, each indicative of a level of pain.”
“Take your pills.”