Page 50 of Chain Reaction

“Is it helping?”

“With what?”

“With whatever is troubling you.”

“Not as yet,” Reacher said. “I feel I might need a little more time.”

“You took a telephone call. That doesn’t help with calmness and equanimity.”

“You got that right. It upset the vibe. I feel I might need to start over.”

“I observed you a long time before I came out,” the woman said. “I think you’re watching a building down the street. Which one?”

“The blue one,” Reacher said. “Do you know anything about it?”

“It’s a law office. The name is Lazarus Lorenzo.”

“Do you know how many people work there?”

“Usually six. Three men and three women. Today only four. Two men and two women.”

“Do you know their names?”

“We have never met. We have never spoken.”

Reacher said, “Two women just left, a few minutes ago.”

“And one man left earlier. He hasn’t come back. Only one man remains inside.”

“You sure?”

“I try to be mindful of my surroundings. I find it helps.”

“With what?”

“Crime prevention,” the woman said.

Reacher thought about the stuff in his pockets.

He asked, “Did you call the cops on me?”

“Not yet. But we could. My partner is watching us.”

Reacher glanced at their side window. He saw a pale face behind the glass. Low down. Another small person. He waved, apologetically.

He said, “I’ll move on, if you want me to. I wouldn’t want you to feel uncomfortable. That was never my intention.”

“Why are you watching the blue building?”

“Crime prevention,” he said. Then he thought back to the phone that rang in the taxi. The crew leader’s burner. I guess someone noticed your work phone went dark. Now Hugo wants to know what’s going on. You bet, Reacher thought. The stakes were high. His crew’s phones were going straight to voicemail. What the hell was happening? Hugo needed to know.

Hugo had walked over there to find out.

“Tell me about the man who left earlier,” Reacher said. “How long ago was that?”

“An hour and a half, I think. Less than an hour before you arrived.”

Reacher nodded. The timing was about right.