have to choose between surrender and a shoot-out with city police.
'She's got something!' cried the first man. 'Look, she's on a scent. Go, girl!'
I tried not to breathe.
'Shit, it's half a hot dog.'
'Wait, she's onto something else.'
The voices were closer. Rachel's hand was shaking. How would she react if I fired my gun? These weren't assassins sent by Geli Bauer. They were probably D.C. cops doing their duty.
'She's going in circles,' said the second voice. 'Too many scents. I'm smelling some BO myself. We're gonna have to come back later.'
'Okay. They want her down by the tracks anyway.'
The voices receded.
'What are we going to do?' Rachel whispered.
'Wait.'
'How long?'
'They can't keep Union Station closed all day.'
'You think the dog is coming back?'
'I don't know.'
'I think I peed in my pants.'
'Don't worry about it.'
'Won't the dog smell it?'
She was right. 'Just try to be quiet.'
An hour and forty-five minutes later, a male voice came over the PA system. 'Dr. Tennant, this is Officer Wilton Howard of the Washington, D.C, police department. We want you to know that we know this is all a misunder¬standing. We've been made aware that the shooting in North Carolina was self-defense, and we are prepared to offer you protective custody and unlimited communica¬tion with anyone you wish to speak to. Please step into plain sight with Dr. Weiss, put down any weapons, and turn yourself in to any officer. You will not be treated as a criminal.'
'What do you think?' Rachel asked.
'I hear Geli Bauer in that message.'
'Maybe it's for real. I mean, all the cops in the build¬ing heard that, too.'
'If they've been told I'm a terrorist or something like that, they think anything is justified to bring me out. Plus, they think I'm armed.'
'Are you?'
I started to lie, but she needed to know the truth. 'Yes.'
'Oh, God.'
The police message began again.
'David…'
I reached out and squeezed her hand. 'Stay quiet.'
Another hour passed, with more and varied messages coming over the PA system. On instinct, I told Rachel to lie flat on the floor and remain against the wall. I did the same.
The dog didn't come back, but more cops did. It sounded as if they were walking every row of seats. Now and then I felt the heavy curtain sway as one of them checked it. As footsteps neared us, I pulled my gun out of my pants and prayed that Rachel could hold her nerve. Heavy steps approached me, and then the fabric lifted off my face.
A pair of black boots was inches from my eyes. I held my breath, unsure whether I'd been seen or not. The cur¬tain danced along my right cheek. Then it dropped, and the boots walked away. The cop had only hit the wall a few times with his hand to check behind the curtain. My heart felt as though it had turned to stone. The boots approached again. The cop checked the curtain the way he had before, one row down. I tried to shut out the sound of his footsteps. After a seeming eter¬nity, I realized he had passed us by. The search continued for another five minutes, then the radio chatter died. I thought Rachel must be close to cracking, but I didn't risk trying to speak to her. After twenty minutes with no further appeals over the PA system, I heard a mechanical hissing and clicking that I recognized as rewinding film.
'Is that the projector?' Rachel asked.
'Somebody's rewinding the film. They must be reopening the station. We should go.'
'Maybe we should wait until tonight.'
'No. There'll be guards posted at the exits tonight. Right now, we can count on a lot of confusion as they reopen the station. This is our best chance.'
We got up and moved down the wall to the exit door. After listening and hearing nothing, I opened the door a crack. Two women walked past wearing street clothes. I thought they might be cops, but then the PA announced a rescheduled train. An empty terminal needed no such announcement. I pulled Rachel through the door.
The escalators and staircases were filling with people, and the clangs of kitchen equipment reverberated across the marble floor of the food court. We walked to the escalator and started up.
'When we hit the main floor, walk twenty yards behind me,' I said. 'If someone spots me, blend into the crowd and disappear.'
The escalator terminated near the entrance of the B. Dalton store. I kissed Rachel on the cheek, then struck out across the floor, scanning the crowd for uniforms.
Angry travelers were pouring into the station like water through a dam. Most were heading for the trains. I couldn't have asked for better cover. I glanced back to make sure Rachel was following, then prepared to turn right, toward the main entrance. If the police were funneling people through a single checkpoint, I'd double back and search for an alternate escape route. If not, I'd gut it out and trust to the anonymity of the crowd to get us through.
I veered right and headed into the barrel-vaulted chamber that led to the main entrance. The river of humanity flowing against me was hard to navigate, but I was glad for every person there. By shutting the station for three hours, the police had created an almost impos¬sible situation for themselves.
Between me and the entrance stood the circular restaurant I'd seen on the way in. Two stories high, the open-air cafe was like an island in the center of the floor. It had tables on its second level and a wrought-iron bal¬cony that allowed its patrons to watch the pageant below. It also provided a bird's-eye view for anyone wanting to surveil the huge hall. I started around it on the left side, keeping my face downcast.
'Dr. Tennant!' shouted a female voice.
I glanced up.
Geli Bauer was staring down at me from the cafe's sec¬ond level. Her scarred face and electric blue eyes were impossible to miss, and her presence here had the inevitability of fate. The three hours we'd hidden in the theater had given her time to fly here from North Car¬olina. The police had reopened the station, but Geli had waited in the hope of spotting us. As I whirled to see if Rachel saw the danger, I realized my mistake. Geli instantly spotted her and raised a walkie-talkie to her lips.
'Run!' I shouted to Rachel.
Geli dropped her radio, whipped up an automatic pis¬tol, and aimed down at me.
A woman beside her screamed. As others joined the panic, Geli darted onto a staircase that curved down to the main floor. I slid my hand behind me, toward the gun at the small of my back.
'Don't!' Geli shouted, moving quickly down the stairs. 'I'm not going to fire! The order to kill you came from Godin! Godin's lost his mind!'
She stopped three-quarters of the way down the steps, holding her pistol in a two-handed combat stance.
'If that's true, put down your gun!'
She didn't.
Why hasn't she shot me? I wondered. Then I knew. Rachel was far enough away that if Geli shot me out of hand, she might escape with the terrified mob.
'Drop your gun, Doctor!' Geli yelled, continuing down the stairs. 'Drop it now and lie prone on the floor! I won't fire!'
