HEN ROBIE RACED into the secure building the first person he saw was Blue Man.

The second person he saw was Julie.

Robie’s gut unclenched and he slowed his pace.

Blue Man said tersely, “Follow me, both of you.”

They walked quickly down a hall. Robie saw that Blue Man had a gun in a belt holster.

Robie looked at Julie striding next to him.

She said anxiously, “Is something wrong, Will? What’s going on?”

“Just a precaution. Everything will be cool.”

“You’re lying to me, aren’t you?”

“Pretty much, yeah.”

“Thanks for being honest about your dishonesty.”

“Seems to be the best I can do these days.”

Blue Man closed and locked the door behind them. He motioned for Robie and Julie to sit.

Robie gazed at the pistol. “You don’t usually carry a weapon.”

“We don’t usually have traitors in the ranks.”

“Michele Cohen?” Robie asked.

“Dead. Along with two of my men. The two I officially sent.”

“Where and how?”

“They just found the bodies in the SUV about ten blocks from the bar. Gunshot wounds, all of them.”

“Who was the third guy?”

“Malcolm Strait. Worked here for ten years. Impeccable record.”

“Not anymore. Describe him to me.”

Blue Man did so.

Robie said, “He was the guy who was supposed to come through the front door of the bar. Any sign of him?”

“Not so far. He no doubt had an escape plan in place.”

“What are we talking about?” asked Julie. “Who are these people?”

Robie looked at Blue Man and said, “I think she deserves to know.”

“Go ahead, then.”

Robie took a few minutes to fill Julie in.

She looked puzzled. “Why would they get this lady to tell an obvious lie? They had to know you would track her down, find out the truth. They would have had to kill her and her husband anyway to shut them up.”

Robie said, “You’re right. What did they gain by having Michele Cohen come forward with her story?”

Blue Man said, “Exactly. What did they gain by it?”

Julie said slowly, “Otherwise it was a big risk for them.”

“Michele Cohen had no idea who had approached her husband,” said Robie. “She said he’d gone to the bar to confirm that his gambling debts had been paid off. Instead he got a hole in the head.”

“And so did his wife,” added Blue Man.

“Who else did this Malcolm Strait work with here?”

“Lots of people.”

“You need to talk to all of them. At the very least we need to learn if he left behind anybody.”

“Agreed.”

“So this guy might have somebody else here?” said Julie. She looked straight at Blue Man. “Not so safe a place.”

Blue Man glanced at Robie and said, “We will find that out as quickly as possible. This sort of breach is highly unusual,” he added, looking back at Julie.

“Well for me, it’s one out of one,” Julie shot back.

Robie said, “We can’t stay here now. We have to move.”

“Where?” asked Blue Man.

Robie rose. “I’ll be in touch. Let’s go, Julie.”

Blue Man said, “Where are you going?”

“Someplace safer than this,” said Robie.

Robie piloted the Volvo through the gate and turned left. “This is the spot where we could pick up a tail,” he told Julie. “We’re in a funnel here. Only one way in or out. So keep your eyes peeled.”

“Okay,” said Julie. Her gaze swiveled from side to side and then she turned her head and checked the rear.

As they pulled onto the main road and sped up, she said, “I don’t see any car lights.”

“How about a satellite overhead, can you see that?”

“Are you kidding? They could be tailing us with a satellite?”

“The fact is I don’t know.”

“So what do we do?”

“Hope for the best and prepare for something a lot less than that.”

“Where are we going?”

“The only place I’ve got left. The little house in the woods.”

“Pretty isolated if someone wants to ambush us.”

“And far easier to see someone coming at us. Trade-off. Weigh the pros and cons. I say the pros win in this case.”

“What about satellites?”

“They can’t use a satellite to harm us. They have to have boots on the ground for that.”

“They might send a lot of guys.”

“They might. And then again they might not send anybody.”

“But why wouldn’t they?”

“Think about it, Julie. What’s their endgame? This Malcolm Strait guy was inside that facility with you. He could’ve killed you there. And they could’ve popped me a couple of times already, but conveniently missed.”

“So they want to keep us alive, like you said before. With the bus and everything. But we still don’t know why.”

“No, we don’t. But we will.”