Stuart Woods 6 Stone Barrington Novels

by Stuart Woods

  “As I say, it’s only conjecture at this point. We won’t know more until Manning is arrested, and it’s entirely possible that he won’t say anything then.”

  “But that’s completely crazy,” Thad said.

  “You may be right. But ask yourself this: Who profited from Winston Harding’s death?”

  “Well, Manning, I guess. In some way. Revenge against Liz, maybe.”

  “That’s a possibility. But there’s only one person who actually profited from Harding’s death.”

  Thad didn’t seem to be able even to think it.

  Stone finally said it aloud. “That person is Liz.”

  “No, no, no, no . . .” Thad’s voice trailed off.

  “And if the two of you are married and anything should happen to you, she would profit a great deal more than she did from Winston Harding’s death.”

  Thad’s body sagged as if air had been let out of it. He seemed unable to speak.

  “So, I think you should postpone the wedding until all this has been resolved.”

  Thad seemed to collect himself. He sat up straight. “No,” he said. “I love her, and she loves me. If I know nothing else, I know that. The wedding goes on as scheduled. Do what you can to protect us from Manning, but you are not to say a word about this to Liz, is that understood?”

  “Thad . . .”

  “Stone, you have to either do as I wish in this matter, or leave. There’s no in between. What’s it going to be? Are you with me?”

  Stone sighed. “All right,” he said.

  60

  STONE WATCHED CALLIE LEAVE THE MAIN HOUSE AND, with a man in tow, come toward the yacht. She looked particularly beautiful today, he thought, and he had missed seeing her the past few days, when she had been so busy with the wedding.

  She came up the gangplank. “Stone, this is Jeff Collender of Rightguard Security Services. He’ll be helping us with the wedding, and I thought you’d better brief him.”

  “Yeah, I know,” Collender said, shaking hands. “The name sounds like a deodorant; it was my wife’s idea.”

  “Glad to meet you, Jeff. Have a seat.”

  “I hear you’re throwing quite a shindig, here,” Collender said.

  “That describes it very well,” Stone said.

  “So, what do we need, here? You want us to keep out the gate-crashers, and like that?”

  “Jeff, we may have more of a problem than gate-crashers,” Stone said.

  “Oh? You expecting a lot of big drinkers, then? We’ve had experience with that. We know how to quietly eject the drunks.”

  “Let me explain as fully as I can,” Stone said. “We have to be ready to handle an armed intruder.”

  Collender blinked. “Armed? You mean with a gun?”

  “Well, yes. You do have the capability of supplying armed security people, don’t you?”

  “Sure we do, but we’ve never had to actually shoot anybody.”

  “And I hope you won’t on this occasion, but we have to be prepared for anything.”

  “Okay, we’ll be prepared.”

  “Earlier, I had estimated that we’d need only a few armed men, but now I think they’ll all have to be armed. I assume your men have had some standard training?”

  “Well, most of them are ex-law enforcement, so they’ve been trained by whatever department they worked for.”

  “Are there any that haven’t had training?”

  “Maybe one or two.”

  “Let’s drop them. We need men who know how to handle weapons in a crowd.”

  “Mr. Barrington, why don’t you tell me exactly who you’re expecting?”

  “His name is Paul Manning. He’s tall and slender— six-three or -four, two hundred pounds, dark hair going gray.”

  “Would you recognize him on sight?”

  “Only by his size and shape. I haven’t seen his current face.”

  “His current face?”

  “We believe he’s had some cosmetic surgery.”

  “So you don’t have a photograph?”

  “No.”

  “Ooookay, no photograph.”

  “There aren’t too many people that tall. He should stand out in a crowd.”

  “How big a crowd are we expecting?”

  “About two hundred,” Callie said.

  “There’ll be a tight guest list?”

  “Pretty tight. If a guest wants to bring someone along, we’re not going to make a big thing of it.”

  “And how many of these guests are likely to be armed?”

  “Just the one,” Stone said drily.

  Dino came out of his cabin, and Stone introduced him to Collender.

  “Nice to meet a fellow officer,” Collender said. “I used to be the sheriff of Palm Beach County.”

  “Mmmm,” Dino said. “Don’t let me interrupt, just keep going.”

  “So,” Collender said, “how many people do you want here?”

  “Twenty-four ought to do it,” Stone said.

  “All armed?”

  “Yes. Can you manage that?”

  “Yeah, I can manage it. How do you want me to manage this Manning character, if we spot him?”

  “Isolate him as quickly as possible, pat him down, check whatever name he gives you against the guest list and do it all very, very politely and apologetically. There are going to be some important people here, and we don’t want to annoy them any more than absolutely necessary.”

  “Believe me,” Collender said, “we’re used to dealing with the rich and powerful in this town. We know how it’s done.”

  “Good.”

  “How do you want my people dressed?”

  “Black tie. I don’t want them immediately identifiable as security. Do you have any women?”

  “I’ve got four, all ex-officers and good.”

  “Put them with men. Couples are less noticeable than single men.”

  “Got it,” Collender said, taking notes. “If Manning starts shooting, what do you want done?”

  Stone and Dino exchanged a glance. “Stop him in the most expedient way possible.”

  Collender nodded sagely. “I get you.”

  “I hope so,” Stone said. “I don’t want Manning to be able to hurt anybody. I think you can imagine how big a mess that would be.”

  “Oh, yeah, I read you completely. Are we going to have any cops here?”

  “I’m talking to Chief Griggs in a few minutes about that. I’ll let you know.”

  Collender stood up. “Anything else?”

  Stone shook his head.

  “I’ll be going, then.” He gave Stone his card. “Call me if you think of anything else; there’s office, home and cell phone on the card.”

  “Thanks, and it was good to meet you,” Stone said.

  Callie escorted Collender off the yacht.

  “You think this guy knows what he’s doing?” Dino asked.

  “I hope to God he does. Callie says he’s the best around here.”

  “Twenty-four guys with guns at a party? Let’s hope they don’t shoot each other.”

  “Let’s hope,” Stone said.

  Dan Griggs sounded amenable on the phone. “I’m glad we’ve got a charge against this guy, now,” he said. “I’d like it if we could snatch him off the street before the wedding.”

  “I’d like that, too, Dan,” Stone said.

  “I think we ought to have a meeting of all the security people and my people the afternoon of the wedding, and we’re going to need some kind of lapel pin to identify everybody. I’ll bring some.”

  “Good idea,” Stone agreed. “There’s no way everybody is going to know everybody else on sight.”

  “You know, we’ve covered a lot of parties in this town, mostly off duty, but this is the first time we’re actually expecting an armed intruder.”

  “I hope we’re being overly cautious,” Stone said, “but we’ve got to be ready for anything. The more I learn about Manning, the more he worries me.”

 
; “Let’s meet at four tomorrow afternoon, then,” Griggs said. “I know Jeff Collender. I’ll call him.”

  “See you then, Dan.” Stone hung up.

  Dino called to him from the saloon, where he was watching a golf tournament on television. “Quick, come here.”

  Stone hurried into the saloon.

  “Edward Ginsky was a prominent attorney in both New York and Miami legal circles,” a television reporter was saying. He was standing in front of a large house. “He leaves a widow and two grown children.”

  “What happened?” Stone asked.

  “Ed Ginsky got himself shot.”

  “Any details?”

  “Maid found him on his front steps this morning. He took two in the head.”

  Stone sank into a chair. “Where is this going to end?”

  “It’s not going to end until Manning is dead,” Dino said. “And I think you and I ought to do whatever we can to see that that happens, if he shows up at the wedding.”

  “Dino, are you suggesting we just shoot him down on sight?”

  “As much as I’d like to, I think we have to be a little more subtle than that,” Dino said. “But not much.”

  61

  STONE STOOD IN FRONT OF THE LIVING ROOM FIREPLACE in Thad Shames’s house and regarded the decidedly mixed group of men and women who stood around him, dressed—or half-dressed—in what each of them understood to be evening clothes.

  Behind him, propped on the marble mantel, was a crude drawing of the house and grounds that he had done himself with a Magic Marker in black, with other colors for various personnel. He felt quite proud of it, in fact.

  “Okay, everybody listen up,” he said. “You see here an outline of the place—house, gardens and yacht. There are sixteen small circles, in red, denoting employees of Rightguard Security. Jeff Collender will assign each of you to stations, and, once we’ve swept the grounds, you are to maintain those stations. Pick up a drink from the bar so you’ll look at least a little like a guest, and the drink will be iced water, soda, tonic or soft drink—no booze. Eight of you, four men and four women, will roam the house and grounds as couples. Jeff will assign you areas to patrol.

  “The green circles denote Palm Beach police officers—two at the curb to control traffic, one at the door to display a little authority to anyone contemplating gate-crashing, especially unauthorized members of the press, and to handle the metal detector. Authorized press people will be wearing photo IDs on strings around their necks. If you see anybody taking notes or photographs who is not wearing this tag, firmly request the ID card and, if it is not immediately forthcoming, escort him or her from the premises. If possible, take such people either through the center hall of the house or around the sides to the street. If they become obstreperous, turn them over to a police officer on the street, who will arrest them for trespassing and place them in a police van.”

  He pointed to his colleagues as he listed their names. “Chief Dan Griggs, Jeff Collender of Rightguard, Lieutenant Bacchetti and I will be known as the ‘management group’ and will be roaming the house and grounds. Everybody has been issued a lapel pin—green for Rightguard Security, red for Palm Beach Police, black for management group. You may also see some people with yellow lapel pins, but they are separate. Each of you has been issued a two-way radio, tuned to channel six. You understand that the use of radios is to be confined to sightings of Paul Manning. There is to be no unnecessary chat on the radios; there are too many of us for that. Paul Manning is six-feet-three or -four, two hundred pounds, dark hair going gray, moderately long. We have no photographs or sketches of him. If you spot a man answering that description, say the word ‘bogey’ into your microphone and give the specific location. If you see a weapon, either in his hand or on his person, say, ‘gun,’ into the radio. Keep it as short as you can while conveying the information you need to. After that, speak into the radio only if the subject changes position or if you are asked questions by one of the management group.

  “Each of you has two sheets of paper with the entire guest list printed on them. If you have reason to suspect that a visitor is uninvited, politely request his or her name and refer to the list. If the name does not appear, ask the person to accompany you to the front door by one of the routes already mentioned, and turn him or her over to a police officer, who will determine if that person is, in fact, invited. It is possible that some invited guest may bring along another, uninvited guest. If an invited guest intercedes on behalf of such a person, do nothing, but make a note of the name on your guest list. Apologize for any inconvenience.

  “Everybody insert the radio earplug for a sound check.” He waited while they did this. “This is a test,” he said into the microphone concealed in his left hand. “Anybody didn’t hear that, raise your hand.” No hands went up. Thank God the equipment was working.

  “Now, let me tell you the policy on firearms. You are all carrying concealed weapons. You are not to take out that weapon, unless you see a weapon in the hand of someone not in this room now, such as the subject, Paul Manning. If you do see a weapon and produce your own weapon, you are not to fire unless you feel sure that the subject is threatening to fire. You are not to fire unless you have a clear shot. You are not to shoot any guest. I hope that is perfectly clear.” That got a laugh. “You might remember that if you fire a weapon this evening, you are going to have to answer to the police and, maybe, the courts for your actions. If you are in doubt about whether to fire your weapon, keep that in mind.

  “Finally, if you spot the subject or any other threat, do not head for the bride and groom. Four Palm Beach detectives will be assigned to accompany them everywhere they go. Instead, head for the subject, and be ready to use physical force to disarm or disable him. Any questions?” Stone looked around at each face. Nobody spoke.

  “All right, if you don’t already have an assigned station, get one from the management group. As soon as you have your assignments, we’re going to start at the seawall, and in a straight line, at arm’s length, we’re going to sweep the entire property, check every bush, every flower bed for any unwelcome person or weapon.” Or bomb, he thought, but didn’t say. He walked over to where Jeff Collender stood. “Jeff, the man standing over to the side of the group, there.” He nodded toward a man in his twenties, barely encased in a white dinner jacket, with a head that had recently been shaved.

  “Yeah, he’s one of mine. Jason.”

  “Assign him to the seawall, to watch for anyone approaching the property in a boat. I don’t want him mingling with the guests. He’ll scare them to death.”

  “Will do.”

  “All right, everybody, let’s go out to the seawall and start back toward the house.” Stone led them out of the house and toward the yacht. When they were stretched out at arm’s length, he called to them, “Commence your search, and when you get to the house, re-form farther down that way and come back to the seawall. When that’s done, take up your assigned positions.” He looked at his watch. “It’s ten minutes to five. Guests will start to arrive at six, so move quickly but carefully.”

  “Dan, Jeff, Dino, the four of us will search the house, starting at the top floor. When we get downstairs, Dino and I will take the kitchen.”

  The four men walked back to the house, climbed the stairs to the third floor and went down hallways, knocking on every door, checking every room.

  “Dan, your men at the door know that nobody enters the house except through the metal detector?”

  “They know.”

  “Okay, Dino, let’s check the kitchen.” Stone led the way, and they walked into a large, restaurant-style facility, teeming with people. He found the caterer, spooning caviar into a crystal bowl. “Mr. Weems?”

  “That’s me.”

  “My name is Barrington. I’m in charge of security.”

  “How do you do?”

  “I’d like you to walk around the room with me and confirm that every one of these people is known to you as a member of
your staff.”

  “Okay,” the man said.

  Stone walked him around the room, then took him into the dining room, where a bar was being set up. “Do you know every one of these people?” he asked.

  “Every one of them. They’re all mine. At the reception, we’ll have half a dozen people serving drinks who are not my regular employees, but they all come well recommended.”

  “Thanks for your time.”

  “Don’t mention it.” The man returned to his work.

  “Looks like you’ve got it covered,” Dino said.

  “I hope so,” Stone replied. “Can you think of anything we haven’t done?”

  “Nope, not yet, anyway. If Manning gets in and shoots Thad or Liz, then I’m sure I’ll think of a couple of things we should have done.”

  “Great,” Stone said.

  “By the way,” Dino said, “have you read the guest list?”

  “I glanced at it. I don’t know anybody who’s coming except Bill Eggers and a couple named Wilkes.”

  “Check it again,” Dino said, “under C.”

  Stone removed the list from an inside pocket and ran a finger down to the C’s. He felt a light sweat break out on his forehead. “Mrs. Arrington Calder,” he read aloud.

  “Did you know about that?” Dino asked.

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “I didn’t think so. You’ve been too cool.”

  “And why do you think her name on this list would make me less than cool?” Stone demanded.

  “Well, you’re raising your voice,” Dino said, “and, all of a sudden, you’re sweating.”

  62

  STONE AND DINO TOOK ONE MORE WALK AROUND THE property, then, at six o’clock, they headed for the front door to check out the arrival procedures. Guests were already pulling up in Bentleys, Rollses and Mercedes-Benzes, and Stone was pleased with the efficiency with which the cars were being taken away and parked by the attendants.

  He watched as a couple moved through the metal detector, which had been disguised as a rose arbor. A quiet beep was heard, and a smiling police officer approached the couple.