49

            The apartment was a tidy one-bedroom decorated in warm, earthy colors, furniture with smooth lines, and lots of photos of family and friends.  A floor-to-ceiling window in the living room granted a jaw-dropping view of the Midtown skyline.

            “Car keys,” Lisa said from the kitchen, and tossed Anthony a set of keys.  “As soon as I powder my nose, we can go.”

            While she headed down the short hallway to the bathroom, he approached the living room window, and looked to the road below.

            Passing through a pool of light cast by a streetlamp, a large black SUV crawled south along the road at a deliberate pace, like a lurking spider.  It crept by the condominium, rolled to the corner, made a right, and disappeared from view.

            A charge of adrenaline leapt through his heart.  He ran to the bathroom and pounded the door. 

            “Lisa, we’ve gotta go now.  I think they’ve found us.”

            “I’m coming!”  The toilet flushed, and the water turned on.

            He raced to the coat closet in the foyer.  Inside, he found a red silk scarf, and snatched it out.

            He returned to the living-room window.  The SUV had doubled back and was drawing toward the condominium again. 

            This time, it would stop. 

            Lisa came out of the bathroom.  He handed her the scarf, and the car keys.

            “Wear this,” he said.  “You’re going to drive.”