Kisser

“Why didn’t you report this to the police?”

“I am the police,” Stone said. “You want to see my badge again?”

“What precinct?”

“The First.”

“Who’s your boss?”

Stone gritted his teeth. “Lieutenant Doyle. I’m on special assignment.”

“What kind of special assignment?”

“If I was allowed to tell you that it wouldn’t be special,” Stone explained. It went on like this until Dino arrived.

Dino showed his ID. “You two,” he said, pointing two fingers at the detectives, “listen up.”

The detectives tried to look attentive.

“I’m taking care of this,” Dino said. “There’s no report to make.”

“We gotta make a report, Lieutenant,” one of them said softly. Dino was well-known in the department, and they were being appropriately deferential.

“You don’t gotta do nothing,” Dino said, “except forget this. Mention it to nobody, and if anybody mentions it to you, refer them to me at the Nineteenth. Believe me, you don’t want to be involved in this one.”

The two detectives looked at each other, then back at Dino. They nodded simultaneously, got up, and left the house.

“Thank you, Dino,” Carrie said. “That was sweet of you.”

Dino patted her on the head. “Don’t you worry about it, sweetheart.” He looked at Stone. “You want a lift?”

“Please,” Stone said, getting up.

“You’re leaving?” Carrie asked, looking surprised.

“There’s nothing more for me to do here,” Stone said.

“But plenty for you to do in your bedroom,” she said, pouting.

“My bedroom is none of your business,” Stone said. “Now shut up and let Dino do his work.”

Stone and Dino left the house and walked down the front steps. “You’re sure it’s the ex-husband?” Dino asked Stone.

“No. Apparently, Carrie has treated the entire cast of her show like shit. It could be anybody.”

“I’ll have the airports watched.”

“Just Teterboro,” Stone said. “The guy flies himself.”

“That makes it easier.”

“He’s off the ground by now, but the tower will have a record of his departure.”

“Where does he land in Atlanta?”

“Probably Peachtree DeKalb,” Stone replied.

“I’ll pull a favor and get him talked to. How long would his flight take?”

“He flies a King Air. Say, three hours. All this happened between five thirty and six. If he went straight to Teterboro, he’d be in the air by seven. You’ve got a shot at having him met.”

“But no evidence.”

“Well, there is that.”

“What about a bullet?”

“Passed through,” Stone said, but he turned and looked at the front of the house. “There,” he said, pointing at a brick with a missing chunk. “Ricocheted from there.”

They both looked around for the bullet but couldn’t find it.

“It’ll be distorted anyway,” Dino said. “Wouldn’t provide any ballistics to check.”

They got into Dino’s car and left.

54

STONE FOUND MITZI in the garden, dunking a croissant into her coffee.

“ Charleston ma

“My mother would turn over in her grave,” Mitzi replied, “but I love it this way.”

Stone asked Helene for some breakfast and sat down at the garden table.

“So, what was the emergency?” Mitzi asked.

“Somebody took a shot at Carrie,” Stone said.

“Hit her?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, good.”

“Don’t gloat; it wasn’t that bad. She’s going to rehearsal later this morning.”

“I’ll bet the list of suspects is a long one,” Mitzi said.

“How’d you guess?”

Mitzi made a snorting sound. “You could include all the members of her high school class.”

“And the cast of her show, apparently, but it was probably her ex-husband. He’s been stalking her.”

“You think he meant to kill her? I mean, he missed.”

“Most people are lousy shots,” Stone said. “The untrained just point in the general direction and yank the trigger.”

“More people should train,” Mitzi said.

“If they did, we’d just have a lot more successful shootings.”

“Good point. Do you suppose we could persuade the NRA to support training shooters badly?”

Stone laughed. “Probably not.”

“You were good last night,” Mitzi said. “There are times when I’m so discouraged with men that I think about becoming a card-carrying lesbian. You’ve restored my faith in men.”

“Really?”

“Well, mostly; a lot of them are still shits. Women are more empathetic.”

“Am I a shit?”

“Never,” Mitzi said, “at least, not on purpose.”

“Well, I guess that’s a compliment.”

“A higher one than you might think.”

“You said you took the lieutenant’s exam?”

“Right.”

“I thought you were a detective first grade.”

“I made sergeant two years ago. I don’t talk about it much; three members of my squad flunked the sergeant’s exam.”

“All the more reason for the brass to transfer you if you get the promotion.”

“I have other things going for me,” she said. “Some of them might offset male cop jealousy.”

“Has the department come that far since I retired?”

“Ask me after a few dozen more cops retire or die.”

“You think Brian will get bumped upstairs?” Stone asked.

“I don’t think he’ll be where he is much longer,” she replied.

“Not even if this bust is a big success?”

“If it is, it won’t be Brian’s fault. I think enough people in the department know that.”

“I hope you’re right,” Stone said.

Helene came into the garden from the kitchen, carrying Stone’s breakfast and the cordless phone. She handed it to Stone. “For you.” She went back to the kitchen.

“Hello?”

“It’s Tiffany.”

“Good morning.”

“Are you alone?”

Stone thought about this before he answered. “Yes,” he said finally.

“Let’s have di

Stone didn’t hesitate. “I don’t think that’s a good idea until this bust is over. Let’s not get talked about right now.”

Mitzi’s eyebrows went up. She mouthed, “Tiffany?”

Stone nodded. “There’s something else I want to talk to you about, though.”

“What’s that?” Tiffany asked.

“I think we need a chopper to cover this bust.”

“Why?”

“We’re dealing with two experienced and very tricky con men, and I’m worried about being thin on the ground.”

“Why can’t the NYPD furnish the chopper?”

“The demand for their air fleet is heavy; yours is lighter.”

“Should I speak to the commissioner about this?”

“I don’t think that’s necessary,” Stone replied. “All I want is to be able to make a cell phone call and get something in the air instantly.”

“You worry too much.”

“I think it’s best to worry too much before the bust than afterward.”

“Oh, all right, I’ll make the call, but you owe me for this one.”

“Yes, I owe you.”

Tiffany hung up without saying good-bye.

“That’s interesting,” Mitzi said.

“Asking for a helicopter?”

“Yes, that, too, but more that Tiffany is calling you.”

“You know we have some history.”

“Everybody who reads ‘Page Six’ in the Post knows you have some history.”

“That was speculation; I didn’t appear in the photographs, and they couldn’t prove that the woman was Tiffany.”

“Sorry, I should have Mirandized you before I asked about that. But why is Tiffany calling you?”

“She wants to have di

“She wants a second chance to become infamous?”

“That’s an interesting way to put it,” Stone said. “I never considered that dining with me carried the risk of infamy.”

“I shouldn’t think it would do either of you any good. It’s obviously a toxic relationship.”

“Mitzi, you don’t have to talk me out of it; I don’t want to have di

“Well, you did put her off, didn’t you?”

“I thought it best.”

“I’m glad,” she said, leaning over and kissing him on the forehead.

Stone rolled his eyes upward. “Do I have lipstick on my forehead now?”