‘Miss Lewis, we have a Dictaphone that will go in your jacket pocket.’ Carter hands her the device. ‘It’s only good for regular recording, so it’s not useful for real-time surveillance. But if you get a hit, we’ll be able to analyze the conversation after the event.’
‘No wire for me?’ Emma checks the cassette, presses the buttons to familiarize herself before slipping it into her jacket pocket. There’s a small lurch as the van stops for a traffic light.
‘We thought it might be harder to conceal,’ Reyes says over his shoulder. He’s fixing a tiny microphone to Bell’s bare chest with theathletic tape. Bell meets her eyes briefly, lifts his arm so Reyes can position the transmitter and the wire.
‘You’ll need to stay by Mr Bell,’ Carter advises. ‘That’s both practical and a safety issue. Listen, I’ve been on the phone with Alan Kraus all morning – we only have seventy-two hours. After that, the city has reserved the right to inform the public of the risk. That’s all Kraus would agree to, and we can’t really argue.’
‘So we have three nights to stake out Paradise,’ Emma says.
‘You might see a suspect tonight, or tomorrow night, or Saturday night – or you might luck out.’ Carter puts a hand against the wall as they go over a bump. ‘But if we’ve got three nights, we’re going to use them.’
Horner hunkers forward on his seat, showing a clipboard with a miniature schematic of Paradise nightclub. It’s hard to make out details clearly in the reddened interior light of the van, but Emma saw the schematic earlier, so this is just a refresher.
Horner points to the locations on the schematic with stubby fingers. ‘SWAT will be located here, at back of house, here in this alley, and we’ll have an officer on the inside mezzanine and two more on the floor. Squad units will be stationed here, here, and here. Agent Carter and myself will be in this van with Agent Reyes, listening to the transmitter feed – so if you get a hit, or you feel your safety has been compromised, call it and we’ll send in the cavalry.’
‘Did we come to a resolution about weapons?’ Bell asks, buttoning his shirt back up.
Carter shakes his head. ‘No weapons. The crowd, the location... There’s too many variables.’
Reyes rummages in his boxful of gear. ‘I’ve got something that might help. Have a look.’
He holds up what appears to be the grip of a bicycle handle – a straight brown cylinder with a metal tip. Reyes uses a flicking motion to extend the barrel into a dull metal baton about ten inches long.
‘It’s a friction-lock design.’ Reyes presses the baton tip against the floor of the van to collapse it back into the grip. ‘You can use it for strikes, blocks, and takedowns. It’s not going to be a problem in a crowd, like a revolver could be, and if the perp manages to get it off you, it’s less damaging than a knife. Good for close encounters. Check it out.’
Emma takes the baton he offers: she likes the feel of the grip in her hand. She nods at Reyes and pockets the baton in her jacket. Bell declines with a shake of his head.
‘Two minutes,’ the driver calls from the front.
‘Thanks, Mark,’ Carter says. ‘All right, this is it. You know what you’re doing?’
‘We go in, look around,’ Bell recites. ‘Get a better understanding of the layout of the club, and where the perp might exit. Watch for patrons who approach. Watch for girls that fall within the victim demographic, see who approaches them. Keep our eyes and ears open.’
‘You got it,’ Horner confirms. ‘The club closes at oh three hundred. If nothing happens tonight, tomorrow night we do it all over again.’
‘Take care and good hunting.’ Carter nods at Emma and Bell in turn as the van eases to a stop. ‘Okay, folks, here we go.’
Bell is collecting the IDs and some cash; Reyes pulls the door open. Emma steps out into the night and unfolds. She’s still not used to having hair; it catches on her collar and brushes against her ears. They’re parked in a quiet alley off Sixth Street, near a parking lot with a blue dumpster. A pizza place on the corner has winking bulbs on the facade. She can smell the Allegheny River, faintly boggy. Behind her, the sound of the van door rolling shut.
Emma has a moment of jittering weakness, like motion sickness. She’s miles outside her comfort zone here, dangling on a wire, relying entirely on law enforcement to protect her. It runs completely counter to her natural instincts. She reminds herself of what Kristin said – that Bell will look after her, even if the police don’t. Emma centers herself: the soles of her runners scrape on grit, and her nostrils flare. She reaches for the baton in her pocket, takes it out. It’s solid in her hand. She flicks her wrist to extend the baton, weighs it through a sharp swish.
Bell walks up beside her, gives her the ID. ‘You ready?’
‘As I’m gonna be.’ She tucks the ID in her jeans, braces the baton point against her leather-gloved palm, collapses and pockets it. ‘Let’s go.’
Up to the corner, turn right. Emma controls her breathing as they walk, trying to take everything in. There are decorative trees planted on the sidewalk. Ahead, the imposing storied structure of the Fulton Building, people crossing the street to reach it. She can feel the pulsing thrum of music in the pavement.
‘One second.’ Bell puts a hand on her arm to halt her progress. ‘Are you all right?’
Emma locks her jaw and nods, unwilling to disclose her real response. They’re in gloom under the awning of a closed business, a flower shop.
‘Emma …’ Bell’s hand is still on her arm, steadying. He stands close on the sidewalk, and she can feel his warmth. ‘I’ll be right here. I’m gonna be with you the whole time.’
She nods again, curt.
‘Stay by me, okay? I mean it. I don’t wanna lose you in the crowd, that would be … That would freak me out.’
She looks up. Bell’s cheeks are hollowed by streetlight and shadow, brown circles under his eyes. He still seems shocked that Carter has agreed to her suggestion, that they are really doing this – he is learning a hard truth about the FBI right now. But he is still the boy she knows: the boy who backed her up at St Elizabeths, the boy who held the watch in the Cool Room while she slept two nights ago.
