Thats right, she did mention that. Drakes code knock sounded on the door of the office, and Della Street opened it. Didnt hear anything of the burglary, did you? Chapter 7 Okay, did she saywhy she was having an abortion? Im representing a client. Well, I said, thats interesting. How nice, Mason said. What did they find out from the weapon? It damn near worked. Shit, I bet if theyd come to me, I couldve figured out how tove made it work. Dude, Valentine said with a smile. In what way? We worked together. We were friends, as I told you on the phone. Im very sorry shes gone. I walked outside. There was a cab stand half a block west. A lone cab sat there. I went up to the drivers door and knocked on the window. The wind was making a metal racket with anything loose. Scents of cold and impending rain made the now moonless night bleaker. The blinking red light at the intersection signaled a disturbing urgency. Want some coffee? Im going to make some. He had no formal training as a spy, but he had spent years as a soldier in the Middle East. And those wars werent just about carrying guns and shooting at the enemy. They had been about gathering information, getting Afghans and Iraqis in villages and towns and cities and deserts to trust him and provide intelligence. And he had participated in a number of info drops where he knew he was being watched andhad to carry it off in a way that would not cause harm to him, or death to his informants..