I asked: "How long between when you caught the girl and your arrival?"
"Ten-fifteen minutes, maybe. Tony nigh took the coupe to pieces. An' that took time."
I looked at Ricori. McCann must have come upon the girl just about the moment Braile had died. He
nodded:
"She was waiting for the dolls, of course."
McCann asked: "What do you want me to do with her?"
He looked at Ricori, not at me. Ricori said nothing, staring at McCann with a curious intentness. But I
saw him clench his left hand, then open it, fingers wide. McCann said:
"Okay, boss."
He started toward the door. It did not take unusual acumen to know that he had been given orders, nor