frightened to death and waiting on the west beaches. They greeted our people as if we were liberators.'
'Then they got Grinell.'
Khalehla looked down at Evan; she paused, then shook her head. 'No. I'm sorry, darling.'
'How…?' Kendrick started to rise, wincing at the pain in his stitched and bandaged shoulder. Again gently, Rashad held him, lowering him down on the pillow. 'He couldn't have got away! They didn't look!'
They didn't have to. The Mexicans told them.'
'What? How?'
'A seaplane flew out and picked up the hombrepatron.'
'I don't understand. All communications were out!'
'Not all. What you didn't know—couldn't know—was that Grinell had small auxiliary generators in the cellar of the main house with enough power to reach his people at an airfield in San Felipe—we've learned that much from the Mexican transmission authorities; not who but where. He can run and even disappear, but he can't hide forever; we've got the tail of a trail.'
'Very alliterative, as my executioner might say.'
'What?'
'Forget it—'
'I wish you'd stop saying that.'
'Sorry, I mean it. What about Ardis's lawyer and the ledger I told you about?'
'Again, we're closing in but we're not there yet. He's taken a hike somewhere, but where no one knows. All his phones are monitored and sooner or later he'll have to call one of them. When he does, we'll have him.'
'Could he have any idea that you're after him?'
'It's the big question. Grinell was able to reach the mainland, and through San Felipe he could have sent word to Ardis's lawyer. We simply don't know.'
'Manny?' asked Evan hesitantly. 'Then again you didn't have time—’
'Wrong, I had nothing but time, desperation time, to be exact. I called the hospital in Denver last night, but all the floor nurse could tell me was that he was stable… and, I gather, something of a nuisance.'
'The understatement of the week.' Kendrick closed his eyes, shaking his head slowly. 'He's dying, Khalehla. He's dying and there's nothing anyone can do about it.'
'We're all dying, Evan. Every day is one day less of life. That's not much help, but Manny's over eighty and the verdict's not in until it's in.'
'I know,' said Kendrick, looking at their entwined hands then up at her face. 'You're a beautiful lady, aren't you?'
'It's not something I dwell on, but I suppose I'll pass for okay-plus. You're not exactly Quasimodo yourself.'
'No, I just walk like him… It's not very modest but our kids have a fair chance of being decent looking little bastards.'
'I'm all for the first part but somewhat dubious about the second.'
'You understand that you just agreed to marry me, don't you?'
'Try getting away from me and you'll find out how really good I am with a gun.'
'That's nice. “… Oh, Mrs. Jones, have you met my wife, the gunslinger? If anyone's crashed your party, she'll nail him right between the eyes.”'
'I'm also black belt, first class, in case a weapon makes too much noise.'
'Hey, terrific. Nobody's going to push me around any more. Pick a fight with me, I'll let her off the leash.'
'Grrrr,' growled Khalehla, baring her bright lovely teeth, then composing her face, looking down as if studying him,
