Shoot First (A Stone Barrington Novel) by Stuart Woods

Author:Stuart Woods [Woods, Stuart]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2018-04-09T18:30:00+00:00

33

Stone stared at the floor numbers of the elevator as they slowly changed.

* * *

—

“LET’S GET OUT of here,” Beria said to his companion.

“Better see if there’s a back way,” the man replied.

* * *

—

THE ELEVATOR DOOR opened; Stone stepped into the car and began looking for the correct number. Finally, he found G and pressed it, then slipped on his shoes and tucked the gun into his waistband. The door slid silently shut, but the car did not move.

Stone was about to reach for the button again, but the door slid open and two men stood there. Beria was maybe six feet and 190 pounds; the other man was taller and a gorilla by any measure, maybe three hundred pounds. They stared at Stone.

“Good morning,” Stone said, backing up until he was leaning against the rear wall. “Going down?”

“Thank you, yes,” Beria said, stepping onto the elevator, followed by the gorilla. The door slid shut again, and after another pause the car started down.

Beria, who was leaning against the wall on Stone’s left, said, “You live upstairs?”

“No, just visiting,” Stone replied. The elevator seemed to inch down.

“Quite a building, eh?” Beria asked.

“Spectacular views,” Stone replied.

“Who lives upstairs?” Beria asked.

“A woman of my acquaintance,” Stone replied.

“And her husband?” Beria asked slyly.

“I’m afraid so. Fortunately, he’s out of town.”

Beria gave a short laugh, and the elevator stopped. The door slid open, and the two men got off. “Be careful,” Beria said.

“Don’t worry,” Stone said, following them out of the elevator, but more slowly, hoping to put more distance between them.

The two went through the outside door and turned right, toward Park Avenue. Stone turned left, got out his phone and called Fred, who was waiting on Park.

“Yessir?” Fred said.

“Meet me on the corner of Fifty-ninth and Lex.”

“Yessir.”

Stone put away the phone and continued walking. As he did, a black S-Class Mercedes drove past him, and Beria waved from the rear seat. As Stone approached Lexington Avenue, the light changed and the Mercedes stopped. The rear window slid down, and Beria said, “Can I give you a lift somewhere?”

“Thank you, but my car is just around the corner,” Stone replied with a little smile. He turned left, just as Fred drew up. The light changed, the Mercedes turned right and drove down Lex. Stone got into the Bentley. “Fred,” Stone said, “follow the Mercedes, but keep well back.”

“Which Mercedes, sir?”

“The black S-Class.”

“Which black S-Class?” Fred asked.

Stone looked ahead of them and saw two Black Mercedeses driving a block down Lex ahead of them.

“Shit,” Stone muttered.

“Let me know when you decide,” Fred said

“Do you know which one entered Lex from the direction I came?”

“I’m not sure,” Fred replied.

“Be sure to keep up with the changing lights,” Stone said. “We don’t want to get stuck. If we get a red light, run it.”

“As you wish, sir.”

As Stone watched, the Mercedes in the left lane turned left on East Forty-ninth Street, and the other continued straight ahead. “Follow the one that turned,” Stone said, taking a flier.

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