The Cobra

In front of the door, she pushed a button for one of the apartments. "It's Lana," she said into the speaker.

"Who's that with you?" asked a man's rough voice. He must have seen them from a window.

"He's okay. He's one of us. He's someone you know."

"I don't know him," said the voice.

"You know of him," Lana said. "It's all right. Open up."

A buzzer sounded, and Lana pushed the door open. Blake stepped into the foyer behind her. Stopping at the foot of the deserted staircase, he pulled the pistol from under his drab green jacket.

Lana looked at him. She narrowed her eyes. "What's that for?"

"I haven't stayed alive this long by being careless," Blake said. He pressed a button to drop the magazine from the pistol's handle. As the flat, metal container slid down, he felt himself break into a sweat. Had he emptied it at Hunter and McBain? Of course he had. But he hesitated. What if he was wrong? What if a single blank cartridge was still there and Lana saw it? I'm not wrong, he told himself. But he turned away from her, just in case. He dropped the magazine into his hand. It was empty.

He took a fresh magazine from his pocket. This one held live rounds. He slid it into the automatic, and jacked a cartridge into the firing chamber. He made sure the safety was off.

"You're not very trusting," Lana said.

"That's right. How do I know one of your pals isn't really an undercover cop? The Cobra would be a big prize for him. I'm worth more than the rest of your little group put together. He wouldn't mind blowing his cover for a catch like me."

Lana stared into his eyes.

For a moment, Blake felt close to panic. He'd gone too far. He shouldn't have brought up the subject of undercover cops. He shouldn't have planted the thought in her head. But it was too late to call back the words.

"You don't have to worry," Lana said. Her voice trembled slightly. "Come on," she said.

Blake's legs felt weak as he climbed the stairs behind her. The pistol was slippery in his sweaty hand.

Get out of here! he thought. You can't face all of them. They'll be waiting with guns, just in case. Lana will give the word, and it'll be all over.

But he couldn't allow himself to back down. He followed Lana to the top of the stairs, and up to the door of room 2B.