Stuart Woods 6 Stone Barrington Novels

by Stuart Woods

  “And what does the Agency get out of it all?” Stone asked.

  “We got thirty-five of thirty-six of the stolen grenades back, plus we nailed the guy in New Mexico who sold them to Billy Bob. Unfortunately, the stolen grenade-launching rifle is at the bottom of the Hudson. We’ve got divers looking for it.”

  “How’s Corey?”

  “Antsy, because she can’t work for a couple of weeks,” Lance said, “but she’s on the mend.”

  “I’m sorry about McGonigle.”

  “It wasn’t your fault; these things happen in my line of work.”

  “Is that how you think of it? As a ‘line of work’?”

  “It’s as good a description as any. Oh, by the way, Holly Barker is joining us; I’m expecting her signed contract tomorrow. She drove a hard bargain, though.”

  “I’ll bet she wouldn’t leave the dog behind.”

  “Good guess. Daisy will be joining the team, too.”

  The car pulled up in front of Stone’s house, and he got out. “Lance, what happened to you on the rooftop when Billy Bob showed up?”

  “Oh, I happened to see the FBI man take a bullet, so I lay low. By the time it was safe for me to come out, you were already in the chopper, and I felt I shouldn’t shoot it down.”

  “Thanks,” Stone said drily. “You fellows want to come in for a drink?”

  “Thank you, no,” Lance said. “I have a very long report to write.”

  “Me, too,” Dino said. “You feel up to dinner at Elaine’s tonight?”

  “Sure,” Stone said. “See you at nine.” He turned to go, but the chauffeur spoke.

  “Excuse me, Mr. Barrington, but Mrs. Calder asked me to give you this.” He handed Stone a sealed envelope.

  Stone went inside and upstairs to his bedroom; he wanted a nap before dinnertime. He sat on his bed and opened the envelope. Inside was a single sheet of heavy, cream-colored stationery.

  My Dear Stone,

  First, I want to thank you for protecting Peter. I would have gone crazy, if anything had happened to him. Thank you, too, for taking such good care of me, something you have always done so well.

  I’m afraid that New York is just a little too exciting for Peter and me right now, so we’ve headed back to Virginia. Peter misses his pony, and I miss the peace. Of course, I’ll miss you, too.

  I don’t think you’d transplant very well to Albemarle County, so I won’t even suggest that. But perhaps you’d like to come for a visit now and then. I think your son would like that.

  Love, Arrington

  Stone lay back on the bed and tried not to cry.

  Author’s Note

  I am happy to hear from readers, but you should know that if you write to me in care of my publisher, three to six months will pass before I receive your letter, and when it finally arrives it will be one among many, and I will not be able to reply.

  However, if you have access to the Internet, you may visit my Web site at www.stuartwoods.com, where there is a button for sending me e-mail. So far, I have been able to reply to all of my e-mail, and I will continue to try to do so.

  If you send me an e-mail and do not receive a reply, it is because you are among an alarming number of people who have entered their e-mail address incorrectly in their mail software. I have many of my replies returned as undeliverable.

  Remember: e-mail, reply; snail mail, no reply.

  When you e-mail, please do not send attachments, as I never open these. They can take twenty minutes to download, and they often contain viruses.

  Please do not place me on your mailing lists for funny stories, prayers, political causes, charitable fund-raising, petitions or sentimental claptrap. I get enough of that from people I already know. Generally speaking, when I get e-mail addressed to a large number of people, I immediately delete it without reading it.

  Please do not send me your ideas for a book, as I have a policy of writing only what I myself invent. If you send me story ideas, I will immediately delete them without reading them. If you have a good idea for a book, write it yourself, but I will not be able to advise you on how to get it published. Buy a copy of Writer’s Market at any bookstore; that will tell you how.

  Anyone with a request concerning events or appearances may e-mail it to me or send it to: Publicity Department, G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 375 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014.

  Those ambitious folk who wish to buy film, dramatic or television rights to my books should contact Matthew Snyder, Creative Artists Agency, 9830 Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Hills, CA 90212-1825.

  Those who wish to conduct business of a more literary nature should contact Anne Sibbald, Janklow & Nesbit, 445 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10022.

  If you want to know if I will be signing books in your city, please visit my Web site, www.stuartwoods.com, where the tour schedule will be published a month or so in advance. If you wish me to do a book signing in your locality, ask your favorite bookseller to contact his Putnam representative or the G. P. Putnam’s Sons publicity department with the request.

  If you find typographical or editorial errors in my book and feel an irresistible urge to tell someone, please write to David Highfill at Putnam, address above. Do not e-mail your discoveries to me, as I will already have learned about them from others.

  A list of all my published works appears in the front of this book. All the novels are still in print in paperback and can be found at or ordered from any bookstore. If you wish to obtain hardcover copies of earlier novels or the two nonfiction books, a good used-book store or one of the online bookstores can help you find them. Otherwise, you will have to go to a great many garage sales.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s Imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  The Penguin Putnam Inc. World Wide Web site address is

  http://www.penguin.com