'Or maybe he should have behaved himself,' Maria said.
'What?'
'I know you,' Maria said. 'You are standing there wishing this all could have been different. Detective Howell made his choices. People died. He has to live with the consequences.'
'I know,' McCaskey said. 'You know, I love what I do, but I there are times I hate what I have to do.'
Maria gripped his hand more tightly and gave him a quick, reassuring smile.
The couple went and got their car. They nosed into the thickening traffic of rush hour.
There was little McCaskey could do for Robert Howell but, ironically, there was still one thing he could do for Mac McCallie. And McCaskey intended to do it.
He would find and punish the people who put this tragedy in motion.
FORTY-SEVEN
San Diego, California Wednesday, 2:02 p.m.
No sooner had Rodgers entered the hallway than Kat ran after him.
'General, I have work to do,' she said. 'I can't stay here.'
'You have to,' he said. 'I don't know who is at risk and, more important, by helping someone, you may be an accessory to a criminal conspiracy.'
'I cannot believe the senator is behind this.'
'You cannot prove he is not,' Rodgers said. 'Please. I don't have time to debate this. I need to do some checking.'
'I'll wait an hour,' she said. 'No more.'
Rodgers did not answer. For all he knew, Kat Lockley would leave the room as soon as he was out of sight. Rodgers did not know whether she was truly blameless or just feigning innocence. Before heading downstairs, he stopped and pounded on Eric Stone's door. There was no answer. He did not know where the convention manager was or what he might be planning. There was a lot Rodgers did not know. Too damn much, in fact.
Rodgers took the stairs to the lobby. That was not a consideration for personal security. If McCaskey called, Rodgers did not want to be standing hip-to-hip with nosy USF delegates.
The general reached the courtyard, which was encircled by tall, slender palm trees and brilliantly lit by a peach-colored sun. People were moving in all directions, and cars were stacked two deep in the sweeping entranceway. This was not the way to find Eric Stone. He went back inside to the registration desk and asked if anyone there had seen him. They said they had not. Rodgers did not believe they would have been told to lie. Stone had not come this way. He thought of checking the hotel security camera but decided that knowing where Stone had been was not going to help him right now. Rodgers had to find out where Stone was going.
Rodgers went back outside. He looked over at the convention center. It was probably a circus by now, with conventioneers arriving for free lunch followed by the opening speeches. Mobile media vans were outside, recording the event. It might be possible to use their multiple camera feeds to try to spot Stone. Since it was all Rodgers had, he decided to give it a try.
'General?'
Someone was standing behind him. He turned. It was Stone. He was holding a walkie-talkie and wearing a smile. Faint but sharp-edged voices crackled from the handheld device, the cross-talk of convention workers.
There was a move in the chaos gambit, Rodgers thought. An unexpected move that took control of the board. What Rodgers did not know was whether it was the luck of a novice or the seasoned improvisational skills of a professional.
'I understand you were looking for me?' Stone said, smiling.
'I was,' Rodgers said.
'What can I do for you?'
