Stuart Woods_Stone Barrington 12

you have a drink now?”
    â€œYes, thanks. Scotch, if you have it.”
    Stone poured them all another one, and they sat down in front of the fireplace.
    â€œI couldn’t get in,” Rhinehart said. “Not without taking a chain saw to a wall, anyway. This is the most secure family home I’ve ever been in, and I’ve been in a lot of them. The front door is steel, sheathed in mahogany; the windows are steel and the glass armored; and there are no gaps in the installation—every door and window is alarmed.”
    â€œI’m glad to hear it,” Stone said.
    â€œWhat the hell was Dick expecting?” Rhinehart asked. “He must have spent fifty thousand dollars on security.”
    â€œDick worked for the State Department,” Stone said. “I think they had the work done.”
    â€œState Department? More like the CIA or NSA,” Rhinehart said. “I doubt if the Secretary of State has this much hard-wired security.”
    Stone shrugged.
    â€œThe problem, though, is the same as with any two-thousand-dollar installation: You leave a window cracked or just forget to arm the system, and all this security is useless.”
    Stone nodded. “You have a point.”
    â€œIs that what happened? Did Dick screw up and not arm the system?”
    â€œEither that, or he let somebody in,” Stone said.
    â€œThe locks are something special, too. They’re Swedish, and they use a key that has magnetic points built into it as well as tumblers. I couldn’t pick one of them, and I’m pretty good.”
    â€œI’ll bet you are,” Dino said.
    â€œHal,” Stone said, “do you have any theories about how or why Dick died?”
    â€œWas anything taken from the house?”
    â€œNo.”
    â€œYou mean, nothing that you knew about was gone, but then, had you ever set foot in the place before Dick was killed?”
    â€œNo, and I wouldn’t have known what he had here. The caretaker and his wife would have known, though, especially the wife, since she cleans the place every day. The only thing she noticed amiss was that a vacuum cleaner was left by that door over there.” He pointed at the door to the terrace.
    â€œSo the killer cleaned up after himself.”
    â€œIt appears so, and he took the vacuum bag with him.”
    â€œDid the alarm go off?”
    â€œNo.”
    â€œThen it wasn’t armed, unless the killer had the code. What time of night did it happen?”
    â€œSome time after midnight, according to the state police.”
    â€œAnybody see anybody come or go?”
    â€œNo.”
    â€œNobody moves on this island after ten o’clock. It would be noticed if somebody was driving around. Maybe the guy came by boat.”
    â€œThat’s a good guess,” Stone said.
    â€œYou don’t think it was a local?”
    â€œDo you?”
    â€œNah; everybody liked Dick. I mean, there are some folks on this island I wouldn’t trust with a gun after a few drinks, but nobody had anything against Dick; word would have gotten around. From what I read in the papers about the inquest, it sure sounds like a pro hit, doesn’t it?”
    â€œMore and more,” Stone said. “But I’d appreciate it if you’d keep that notion to yourself. I wouldn’t want the folks to start worrying about hit men stalking their island.”
    Rhinehart tossed off the rest of his drink and stood up. “I’ve got to get home for supper.”
    Stone walked him to the door and thanked him for coming, then returned to the study.
    â€œThis case sure is a pisser, ain’t it?” Dino asked.
    â€œIt sure is.”

23
    A RRINGTON WAS wonderfully naked, seated atop Stone, and he was sitting up, so that he could feel her breasts against his chest. They were moving rhythmically, and she was making little noises and contracting her vagina each time she moved. They were both nearly there, just on the brink, when a noise intruded.
    â€œStop that noise!” Arrington panted. “I’m going to come!”
    Stone woke up in a sitting position, sweating, tumescent and angry about losing the orgasm. He could hear a noise from downstairs. What the hell was going on? He heard the noise again; it seemed louder. He struggled out of bed and into his trousers, picked up the .45 from the bedside table and left the bedroom, pausing on the landing to listen. He heard it again, and it seemed to be