Stone got out his cell phone, dialed a number and, when it answered, punched in several numbers.
“What was that all about?”
“I was setting the alarm.”
“You can do that with your cell phone?”
“It’s a new feature I just got.”
“That’s a good idea for somebody who’s always forgetting to set the alarm.”
“I don’t think Dattila would have my house broken into. Would he?”
“Stone, if those two guys are Dattila’s and if they haven’t already beaten you up after tasting that Scotch, then this is a war of nerves. And if that’s what it is, then turning over your house would be exactly the sort of thing Dattila would do. It’s all about driving you nuts.”
“Order me the spinach salad, chopped, and the spaghetti carbonara,” Stone said, rising. “And loan me your backup gun. I’ll be back shortly.”
Dino passed him a small automatic under a napkin, and Stone slipped it into a pocket. He went outside to get a cab, then he saw the black Lincoln. He went over and tapped on the driver’s window, and it slid down.
“Yeah?” a thick voice asked.
“You’re driving the two guys inside?”
“Yeah.”
“My name’s Barrington; they said you could run me down to Turtle Bay and back. I’m a friend of Carmine’s. Only take a couple of minutes.”
“Okay,” the man said.
Stone heard the electric locks click, and he got into the backseat. When they reached his house, Stone had a quick look around inside to be sure nothing had gone amiss during the time the alarm had not been set, then he went up to his dressing room, opened the safe and took out the little Tussey.45 and a holster. Shortly he was back at Elaine’s. Stone opened the door. “Thanks very much,” he said to the driver.
“Don’t mention it.”
“Oh, I almost forgot: The two guys said they wouldn’t need you anymore this evening.”
“Great,” the man said. “The game’s still on, I think.”
“Good night,” Stone said with a cheery wave. “Enjoy the game.” He went back inside and sat down, slipping Dino his backup piece under the table. The spinach salad appeared before him.
“You checked the house?”
“Yeah, everything was fine.”
“Did you set the alarm when you left?”
“Shit,” Stone said, getting out his cell phone and going through the procedure again.
“You always forget to do that,” Dino said.
“Dino, if you say that again I’m going to dump this salad over your head.”
“Good thing you got that cell phone feature; it’ll be invaluabl
e.”
Stone sighed deeply and began eating his salad.
At the end of the evening, Stone and Dino walked out to look for a cab home. A moment later, the two gorillas appeared at the curb, looking around, mystified. One of them got on his cell phone, apparently looking for his driver.