Vengeance in Death

"Don't beg," Eve muttered. "Jesus." But she gave in and lowered the sportster to the scrubbed tile floor.

"Oh, look at the interior. It's real leather, isn't it? White leather." Unable to control herself, Peabody opened the door of the car and breathed deep. "Just smell it. Oh, oh, check the controls. It's even got an airjet gauge. We could be on the beach in New L.A. in under three hours in this baby."

"Get a hold of yourself, Peabody, or it's back to the sedan."

"No way." Peabody all but dived inside. "You're not getting me out with a hydro-lift until I get a ride."

"I wouldn't think a woman raised by Free-Agers would be so shallow and materialistic."

"I had to work on it, but I've almost got it down." She smiled happily when Eve slipped in beside her. "Dallas, this rocks. Can I try the music system?"

"No. Strap in. We'll look for your dignity later." But because the car called for it, Eve engaged ignition and took off like a rocket.

It took less than ten minutes to reach the Central Park Arms.

"Did you see the way this honey handled the turns? You took that last one at sixty and there wasn't even a shimmy. Imagine what she'd do in the air. Why don't we try it when we leave. Man, I think I had an orgasm rounding Sixty-second."

"I don't need to know about that." Eve climbed out, tossed her key code to the doorman. When she flashed her badge, the hand he'd held out for a tip retreated. "I want that vehicle kept close. I don't want to wait more than thirty seconds for it when I come out."

Without waiting for an answer, she swung through the auto-doors and crossed the mosaic tiles of the lobby toward the massive front desk.

"You have a suite registered to a Brian Kelly," she said, holding up her badge.

"Yes, Lieutenant, scheduled for arrival and occupancy this afternoon. Penthouse B, Tower Level."

"Clear me through."

"I believe that suite is occupied at the moment. However, if you'd like to wait until – "

"Clear me through," she repeated. "Now."

"Right away. The private elevator is down this corridor and to the left. It's clearly marked. Your key code will access both the elevator and the doors, parlor and bedroom."

"Any transmissions, messages, deliveries come in for that suite, send them directly up."

"Of course."

The clerk winced as she strode off, then quickly rang Penthouse B. "I beg your pardon, sir, but a Lieutenant Dallas and a uniformed officer are on their way up. Excuse me? Ah, yes, sir, of course. I'll see to it right away."

Baffled, the clerk hung up, then contacted room service and ordered coffee, tea cakes, and fresh fruit for three.

Outside Penthouse B, Eve drew her weapon. At her signal, Peabody flanked the opposite side of the door. Eve slid her key code toward the lock, gave her aide a quick nod.

They went in low and fast.

She hissed at Roarke, who continued to smile and lounge on the silk-covered sofa pit. "I don't think the weapon's necessary, darling. I've ordered coffee, and the service here is very swift and efficient."

"I ought to give you a jolt, just for the hell of it."

"You'd be sorry later. Hello, Peabody, you look a bit windblown. Very attractive."

Flushing, she brushed at her straight black hair. "Well, I put the sky roof down for a minute on the XX."

"Sexy little ride, isn't it? Well, shall we discuss how to lay the trap now, or wait for the coffee?"

Resigned, Eve shoved her weapon back in its harness.

"We'll wait for the coffee."

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

"We're nearly set up here, Commander. If he calls, we'll be ready."

"If he calls, Lieutenant, and if he follows the same pattern he used to abduct O'Leary."

"He used the same pattern when he contacted Brian Kelly this morning." Beneath the range of the 'link monitor, she jerked a hand so that McNab would stop the chatter. Christ, the man ran his mouth at light speed. "We can take him down here, Commander. All he has to do is move in this direction."

"You better hope he does, and quickly, Dallas, or both of us are going to get our butts singed."

"I planted the bait. He'll take it."

"Contact me the minute you hear from him."

"You'll be the first," she murmured as the screen went blank. "You guys want to keep it down? This isn't the damn party suite."

McNab and two EDD drones were chirping away as they set up equipment in the bedroom that was the temporary command center. Eve worried that she'd thrown this task force together too quickly, but time was the enemy. There were tracers and bypass units, three sets of porta-links, all with headsets and voice mufflers. Recorders were set to clock on with the first beep of the first 'link. McNab had already interfaced it with her office unit.

She'd had all the equipment brought from Central in a delivery van. If her man had the hotel under surveillance, all he would have seen was yet another commercial vehicle pulling into the hotel's rear dock.

No uniforms, no black and whites.

Six cops were on surveillance in the lobby posing as bellstaff, clerks, maintenance. A detective from her squad had taken over for the doorman. She had two more in the kitchen as line chefs, another two covering the penthouse floor as housekeeping staff.

The man power and equipment were eating a moon-sized hole in the departmental budget. If it went wrong, there would be hell to pay, and she'd be the one to pay it.

She wasn't going to let it go wrong.

Restless, she moved out into the spacious parlor. The bank of windows was privacy screened there, as were the bedroom windows. Only Roarke, as owner of the hotel, and his manager were aware of the infiltration of police. At two p.m., one hour after the flight from Dublin landed at Ke

It was going to work. All he had to do was call Eve's 'link.

Why the hell didn't he call?

Roarke came in from the second bedroom and saw her frowning at the screened windows. "You've covered all the details, Eve."

"I've gone over it and over it. He can't wait long to move on Brian. He won't risk Brian contacting you on his own and finding out it's all a scam. On his call to Je

"And if our man knows him at all, he'd know Brian tends to do as he chooses."

"That's right, so he'll arrange for the meet quickly. He's already got the place where he'll kill him set up. And he's not going to want to take chances. Brian's a tough, muscular man in his prime. And he's street smart. He'd put up a hell of a fight."

"He'd have to be taken by surprise," Roarke agreed, "caught off guard."

"Exactly. My guess is he plans to do it all right here. Brian'll be expecting a driver, a messenger, a liaison for you, so he'll open the door. He would have to get a tranq in him then and there, quick, quiet."

"Lieutenant," Roarke said and held out a hand, and when Eve automatically put hers in it, he smiled and squeezed. "If I'd had a minipopper in my hand, you'd be tranqed just that fast and easy. They were popular in certain unsettled areas during the twenties, only they were most often laced with strychnine rather than a dozer. Shaking hands became quite unfashionable for several years."

"You're a fount of the most disturbing trivia."

"Wonderful icebreaker at parties."

"He should have called by now." She spun away to pace. "With each one he's narrowed the time between the murder and the earliest possibility of discovery. He wants me to get close, really close. It makes him feel more superior. It's more of a rush when he knows I'm right behind him, while the blood's still fresh."