Just looking up some witnesses, Mason said non-committally. Oh, I didnt think about that. About Sara, like I said. Well, George Alder was lying face down in a huge pool of blood. Hed been shot through the neck with a thirty-eight caliber revolver, and the bullet had severed one of the big arteries, gone clean on through the neck and apparently didnt lodge anywhere in the room. That gives police the line of fire. The woman who shot him must have been standing right by the desk. Alder apparently fell in his tracks. I hoped he had a few prayers left over for the rest of us. Gee, I hope one of those is for me, he said. Yes. And in that event, there may be a follow-up appointment within one to two weeks to ensure the pregnancy is terminated and the patient is well. If the womans last menstrual cycle was more than eleven weeks ago, an in-clinic abortion may be required. That would have to be performed here. For two? The smoke-and-coffee car was parked out in front of Devines place, and Detective Hancock had the drivers door open. He was sitting sideways in the seat with his feet on the pavement. He looked up as Devine walked into view. I want to thank you for your professional courtesies and I can assure you that you will have no reason to regret them. And now, if youll excuse me, Im really terribly busy this morning, but I did want you to understand the situation as soon as you came in. Doxey parked Masons car off to one side. The police car ground to a stop. One of the radio officers came bustling up to Mason. Hello, Mr. Mason. How are you mixed up in this thing? Why, certainly, Mason said. Afraid so, I said. Because hes important. Thats why he cant say.’ Hes really a snob, Katherine said. I dont like him. I don’t even think his name is André Babineaux.’ Theres one thing you can do, I said. He walked right down the short hall. There was no one else visible. Chianti bottles with wicker bottoms were lined up behind the tiny bar, and some metal pizza platters were stacked on an old wooden credenza along with a mess of laminated menus. The mingled scents of garlic and basil and Parmesan and pasta sauce were readily apparent. The stained carpet was cheap and coming up in places. The walls were dotted with photos of long-dead celebrities, and the usual cheap prints of Napoli, Roma, and the Amalfi Coast. Bottles of olive oil and single droopy flowers in chipped porcelain vases were on every cloth-draped table. It looked like pretty much every standard Italian restaurant hed ever eaten at in New York City. Sure. Itll cost you money, but I can get the information if its at all possible. Of course, sometimes you have to take a guys unsupported word for where he was. The doctor used a probe to examine each wound.Not in very deep, he said. “Your coat and shirtsleeve probably absorbed some of the velocity..