Cold Paradise

“Oh, shit,” Dino said.

Then gunfire broke out.

63

Stone turned around to find a mob of people rushing toward him, many of them screaming.

“Shots fired!” he said into the microphone. “Secure the bride and groom in the master suite now!” Then he and Dino did what cops always do, and other people don’t: They ran toward the gunfire.

They had trouble making headway against the onrushing crowd, but after a couple of minutes they were nearing the house. A man and woman were huddled behind a huge shrub. “On the roof!” the man yelled at Stone, pointing.

“Detail at the front of the house,” Stone said into the mike. “Subject on the roof of the house. Watch the front drainpipes and apprehend.”

“He’s not coming this way,” Dino said. “There must be a way from the roof into the house.”

“Oh, God,” Stone said. He spoke into the mike. “Bride and groom detail. Where are you?”

“On the main stairs,” a voice replied. “We’ll have them secured in a minute.”

“Oh, no,” he said to Dino, “we’ve been suckered. Let’s get up there.” They started to run. “Don’t take the bride and groom upstairs!” he said into the microphone. He raced into the house and headed for the stairs. From the bottom, he could just see the wedding party disappearing down the upstairs hallway. “Wedding group,” he said into the mike. “Stop, and come downstairs.” No one came down. He ran up the stairs.

At the top he came to a sudden halt because the stairs were blocked by the bride, the groom, several guests and four Palm Beach police officers. They were standing there, rigidly, and Stone couldn’t see past them. He stopped a few steps from the top and listened.

“Step away from the bride and groom,” a man’s deep voice said.

Ma

“I said, clear away from the bride and groom,” Ma

Stone could see a couple of guests peel off from the group, but the cops stood their ground.

“Listen, Mr. Ma

“If any of you touches a gun, I’ll start firing,” Ma

Stone swung his legs sideways and got a toe on the landing. Slowly, painfully, he muscled his way up until he could get a grip on the handrail. Then, as silently as he could, he pulled himself to the top of the railing and let himself down on the other side, striking the floor with a muffled thud.

“What was that?” Ma

“What was what?” the cop said. “Come on, Mr. Ma

“For the last time, step away from the couple, or I’m going to start shooting.”

Stone had the 9mm automatic in his hand by now, and he slowly pumped the first round into the chamber. On his hands and knees, he crawled to the edge of the group and, very quickly, stuck his head out and withdrew it. What he remembered seeing was a white-haired man in a di

The odds were not good on hitting Ma

Then Ma

Ma

As he ran down the hallway, he saw Ma

But Ma

Stone fired once more, and Ma

An officer knelt beside the man, his hand at Ma

Stone looked down at Ma

Then he turned to Thad and Liz. “Is either of you hurt?”

“No,” they both said, simultaneously.

“I’m okay,” the cop said. “Get them out of here.”

Stone helped them up and led them to the master suite.

“Is anyone else hurt?” Thad asked.

“A security guard is dead, back at the seawall,” Stone said. “And Ma

“You go ahead, Stone,” Thad said. “We’ll be fine.”

“Is Paul dead?” Liz asked.

Tears were streaming down her cheeks, and Stone thought she looked very worried. “No,” he said, “but he took two or three bullets. An ambulance is on the way. Don’t go out into the hall.” He left the room and closed the door behind him, then he started down the stairs. Where the hell was Dino? Stone had been sure he was right behind him when he entered the house.

He walked into the back garden and surveyed the damage. The members of the band had abandoned their bandstand, and a couple of instruments lay on the ground beside it. A large table used as a bar had been overturned, and the air smelled of spilled booze.

He saw Arrington and her date come from behind a huge banyan tree, where they had apparently been hiding. Then he saw Dolce.